


Reap: Remastered

by MrsAlderaan



Series: The Anti-Heroes of Green Nest [2]
Category: Dungeons & Dragons - All Media Types
Genre: Dungeons & Dragons 5th Edition, Gay, I Can't Believe I Wrote This, I Made Myself Cry, Magicky Bullshit, Rise of Tiamat - Freeform, Talos - Freeform, This Is Why We Can't Have Nice Things, Zhentarim, hoard of the Dragon Queen, mephistopheles - Freeform, myrkul - Freeform, ruler of the seventh circle
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-18
Updated: 2021-01-16
Packaged: 2021-03-09 05:48:10
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 17
Words: 32,665
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27089629
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MrsAlderaan/pseuds/MrsAlderaan
Summary: A long time ago, I began writing the tales of the band of misfits called the "Heroes of Greenest". A long time ago, I didn't know as much about writing as I do now, and I also didn't know nearly as much about D&D. A lot has changed since then.Meet Xanth, Kalinthe, and Nebula. Members of the Zhentarim working for their own means. Meet Elli; a member of the Emerald Enclave with a grisly secret. Meet Boar Ironfist; a member of the Order of the Gauntlet trying to earn his fortune and settle down in a new city. They are all drawn together one on an adventure that will change their lives for better or worse when the looming shadow of a dragon crosses the skies of Greenest leaving nothing but destruction in its wake.
Series: The Anti-Heroes of Green Nest [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/752778
Kudos: 1





	1. Prologue

Cover created by yours truly.

* * *

**_Ruined. That’s basically what I was. Screwed over. Homeless. Jobless. Separated. Athkatla held nothing worthwhile for me anymore. Sure, my family was still there, but just the thought of looking at her was enough to drive me away. Fuck her. Fuck that bitch, and everything she did. I left. I didn’t have much. Just my skills with a weapon, and some paltry remaining coin; but, that’s why people adventure, isn’t it? Nobody goes adventuring because they want to. They do it because they have to._ **

**_I spoke with a man from the Order of the Gauntlet. They were some good people to have as allies, and it didn’t take much to have them initiate me as one of their own. They sent me North to a city near The Reaching Woods to deliver a message. Walking alone along the roads wasn’t the safest of ventures, but neither was living on the streets at home._ **

**_The only things left to my name as I ventured, leaving everything behind were my wits, my weapons, and my morals. Waukeen, how I wish I’d known then how much those things would’ve been tested._ **

**_Days passed, and I experienced little danger. That is, until I saw the biggest danger that I could have imagined as I crested a hill nearby a small town that I learned later was called Greenest. A shadow passing by in the sky. Impossibly fast, and enormous beyond anything I could have conjured in my mind at the time. The scent of ozone hung heavily in the air along with a thick heat that made me cough as buildings burned. I saw so many more shadows just like that, even bigger, after that day. I remember seeing the smoke making its way upwards. Black, cloying, deadly, and, as my body started running faster towards the trouble to help, I heard the screams._ **

**_Some days, those still haunt me._ **


	2. Chapter 1

Boar, along with countless others, ran inside the keep. Beaten and battered, he panted and coughed, trying to rid his lungs of the smoke from the burning buildings. He looked around, and saw people of all types gathered in the bottom of the keep, wrapped in what little they had left. Some of them looked like him. Others, worse. He shook his head to clear the thoughts, and found a man coming down the nearby stairs. He was human, like him, and wearing nicer clothing. The guards gave him tired nods or salutes. He seemed to be of standing with these people.

“Come, come.” The man greeted, gathering Boar, and the other unfamiliar folk into a relatively quiet corner of the keep. Among the group, he saw an enormous human, a bluish colored genasi, a man shrouded in robes and shadow, a boy dressed similarly, and a slender woman with fae-like features and a lighter blue skin as well; she was holding a doctor’s bag. He spoke quietly, and urgently. “Thank you all for coming to our aid.”

The young boy, holding a set of cultist’s robes, leered in a low, guttural voice with almost no inflection. “You’re-” he paused, sounding thoughtful, and menacing, “welcome.” He responded as he began to remove his hood and cowlings to change into the cultist’s robes. 

The man gave the boy an odd look. One of his eyes seemed to twitch, but he looked up at the older folk instead. They seemed more sensible. “Forgive me. I am Governer Nighthill. One of my guards has informed me that you two,” he looked to the two women, “were able to protect the sanctuary of Chauntea?”

Both of the women nodded, but the blue woman looked at the smaller fae woman, nodding. “Yes, sir. I’m Nebula.” She informed him, waving a hand at the smaller woman. “This is Elli since her full name is unpronounceable. We were able to get the townsfolk out of there, and stop them from burning the shrine.”

Governor Nighthill nodded in kind, and looked towards the much taller human. “I already heard from others that you protected a family from Kobolds on your way in before my guards joined you.”

The tall man reached out a hand to shake in the governor’s much smaller one. “Boar Ironfist, sir.” He informed him simply with a small look of pride. 

The governor shook Boar’s hand, and turned to the taller, and seemingly older, of the two dark-robed fighters. “And, you two, I heard, were able to dispatch some of the patrols along the river.”

“Yes, that’s correct.” The man responded in a voice somewhat similar to the boy, but entirely different. His voice had an almost musical quality it was mesmerizing to listen to as the inflection moved up and down like soothing waves. He didn’t pull down his hood, instead extending a single gauntlet covered hand. “Kalinthe.” He stated before gesturing the hand towards the boy. “Xanth.”

The governor nodded one final time. “Well met.” He drew himself up, and looked around the group. “I ask that you complete one more task for me once you are ready. It seems that the looters are planning to burn the mill. It’s all our town’s food supply-” He trailed off.

Kalinthe nodded. “Very well. We will come find you once we are more rested.”

With that, the group disbanded, scattering about the ground floor of the keep. Elli moved to go assist the wounded while the others went to care for their own wounds as well as maintaining their weapons. Nebula saw the man who’d introduced himself as Kalinthe lean over, and a symbol she was familiar with briefly flashed before her eyes. A calculating look came about her face before she walked over to the mysterious man. “I’ll show you mine, if you show me yours.” She murmured to him, revealing an etching of a winged serpent in flight on one of the pauldrons of her plate armor that was normally covered by a cape.

Kalinthe chuckled, and pulled the silver colored necklace from under his robes all the way out, revealing it to her before tucking it back. “An ally, I see.” He replied in that same musical yet menacing lilt.

Nebula smirked, and gave a nod. "Yes. Should I assume, then, that the boy is the same? He certainly dresses the part."

Kalinthe silently gave a nod before moving his head in the direction of Elli. "And, her?"

"Enclave." Nebula shook her head. "Not that she really belongs there." A sneer came across her face, and her voice grew low. "She has a rather sanguine streak for a supposed doctor, if she would just let it out."

Kalinthe listened to the explanation impassively. "Oh, that can be arranged." He smirked back in kind behind his cowlings, but the smirk could be heard easily enough. "It's a pleasure." He added before going back to his restful activities. There would be time after the night's danger to talk.

On a small bench nearby, Boar cared for his guns, reloading them quickly. He needed to be prepared at a moment's notice for anything. A part of him noticed the small, disturbing boy slinking off into the darkness below the keep, but he was too busy to bother with all of that fuckery. After this was over, he was going to be long gone, and at the bottom of a glass of ale. Oh, yes, that's what he wanted right now. A nice cold one.

Xanth stepped into the catacombs below the keep. He sneered as he walked through the dark. The feeling of the damp and roughly hewn floor were hardly visible, making it difficult for him to traverse- for now. He had been promised power, and he would take it by any means necessary. When he came upon an old gate, he paused, seeing the ancient keyhole. It was showing signs of rust, and there were cobwebs wrapped around the bars. Rodents could be seen scampering along the walls down the decrepit tunnel. After quickly assessing the area, he turned briefly to mist before reappearing in a small puff of magic on the other side. The child smiled wide at the success, and began to walk through the tunnel for several minutes. 

The robes he'd stolen off of the cadaver of one of the cultists he'd dispatched were overly large on him, but it wasn't anything that this body wouldn't eventually grow into. He would occasionally stumble over a too-long hem, but continued onward. Regardless of such trifles, he could tuck the clothes in or fold them creatively for now. He had ideas for this cult. It was almost too convenient that they were here. He could use a cult for his plans. 

After making his way to the end of the tunnel, he checked for any danger outside of a second gate before following the same procedure as before to get through the locked portal to the surface. Xanth took a moment to regain his bearings, and quickly found the mill to be up on one of the nearby hills. He started walking, using the cover of night, and his dark clothing to get there without any troublesome encounters. As he drew closer, he could see people in black clothing like his, moving in and out of the building while hauling tinder to light the place ablaze. A smirk pulled at his lips, and he started making his way up the hill with renewed vigor. 

When he crested the ridge, some of the cultists noticed him. In particular, the kobolds took heed of him, seeing his stature. He sneered at them, and they flinched away. He nodded to himself in satisfaction; it was always a job well done when he could intimidate those lesser than himself. 

He walked inside of the mill through the large doors without encountering any trouble, finding the most important looking person there, and making his way towards them. As he got closer in the poorly lit mill, he noticed that their robes weren’t black like his stolen ones, but purple. They turned their head, and he found that their black hair wasn’t that of a man’s, but actually a woman’s hair cropped short. Her expression was severe. It looked like her scowl was almost permanently painted on. The gold embellishments of her purple robes seemed to glimmer when the edges caught the right torchlight. She was gesturing and giving orders, pointing with a large halberd. As if sensing the approach of a body behind her, she turned, looking at eye level before her gaze lowered towards the shorter stature of Xanth. She regarded him with a judgemental look. One that looked confused or curious. Finally, she spoke. “Report, initiate.”

Pleased with this greeting, Xanth gave a small bow. “Greetings, your eminence.” He replied respectfully in hopes of gaining favor. “I have come to inform you that I have discovered a passage to the North of town. It leads underground directly to the keep where the townsfolk retreated to. If we act quickly, we can-”

The woman didn’t let him finish speaking before she began barking orders, gesturing again with her weapon, and directing others to join them for a new mission. “You will go with this one in order to find this supposed secret entrance in order to breach the keep. If you can manage such, then, perhaps, there is real use for you yet.” She commented, looking at the newly assembled small group for a moment with a little nod. 

Xanth nodded, hiding his satisfied smile in the darkness of his cowlings. She believed him outright even though his words led her astray. The actual tunnel entrance was South near the river. He began to turn, readying himself for the journey where he hoped to dispatch this group of cultists. His belly was rumbling with hunger, and the few moments alone would allow him the time to feed. He sniffed slightly, sensing the nervousness of the cultists. He did enjoy the taste that fear left behind in the bodies of the deceased. Like the finest of ambrosias. 

As Xanth began to lead the small group of four towards their future resting place, a call came from one of the guards outside of the mill, and, seconds later, the doors came bursting open, kicked by a powerful boot. One guard in black robes scrambled in, looking panic stricken while a group of four familiar rag tag adventurers barged in. The black-ringed amber irises of Kalinthe met Xanth’s faintly glowing, hollow whitish-yellow ones. They had an unspoken conversation in that moment. One of understanding, but, also, one of a perceived betrayal. Before either of them could act on this newfound information, a small whistle came loud and sharp from behind them, and the sounds of bowstrings tightening could be heard overhead. Xanth turned. “I suppose it’s too late to just talk?”

“Talk.” Came the order from the woman. The human’s voice firm, and almost that of a draconic growl in her anger. 

“Forgive my associate’s rudeness.” Xanth replied slowly, calculatingly. He let his voice remain low so that all around had to keep quiet for fear of missing his words. His speech was metered, and slow. He adjusted his body to be able to see the danger that was the purple woman as well as the group of intruders clearly. “They simply couldn’t wait to meet such a prominent figure such as yourself, miss?” He finished as a question.

“Mondath. Frulam Mondath.” She finished for him. Her response was still guarded, but she seemed proud to give her name. 

Xanth nodded once. People really did love to talk about themselves. It was almost too easy. “And, what interest do you have here with people such as these? They seem lower than you, you see.” He responded in a manner that was almost taunting. 

Several of the onlookers’ feet shuffled when they heard Xanth’s words, but Mondath gestured a hand, telling them to hold. “Merely taking what is ours.” She responded vaguely. She looked self satisfied as a few of the guards surrounded the troublesome group. Her plan had worked perfectly to suss out the adventurers that had somehow managed to impede their plans this night. 

“Oh?” Xanth inquired curiously. “And, what’s that? You don’t seem to be stopping at gold or lives.”

The woman’s scowl deepend, and her eyebrows furrowed together. “Our plans are none of your business, whelp.” She glowered, glancing at her minions. “Kill them.” She ordered, waving a hand, and using three small darts of force to create a hole in the flimsy wall large enough for her to duck through as a makeshift exit. 

Xanth near instantly retreated from beside the cultists that he’d so recently planned on making a meal, and found himself at the side of his companion once again. He gave Kalinthe a look. “You have the worst timing in all of the Nine.” He commented.

Kalinthe responded without so much as moving his head to look down. He was much more concerned with the obvious danger of a dozen trained directly on them along with the swords at their back. “Do be quiet. We  _ are _ in mixed company.”

The first arrow went flying, and went just wide of its mark between Xanth’s eyes. He scoffed, and fired off a blast of force towards the shooter up in the loft, which had him tumbling down from the rafters a second later. The sound of a scream followed by a painful crunch was like music to his ears.

“I guess we’re doing this.” Boar grumbled, drawing both of his guns, and firing up at one of the men. One of the shots went wide while the other hit home. The robed figure taking a knee, and grabbing at its side instead of wielding the bow, now.

Kalinthe turned from the hard to get to danger up above, and found himself face to face with several enemies wielding swords. A smirk pulled at his lips as a sickeningly large scythe formed itself from shadow in his hands. He slashed down, and the blade glowed with a black energy. A squelch quickly followed by a bouncing thud came. The cultist was no more, and his head rolled towards the exit. Seeing the horrific show of power, the guards surrounded the dark robed man, and swung one after the other with all their might. He raised up a hand to guard, and one sword bounced off of the gauntlet. The other three, however, were able to cut and slice him until he looked worse for the wear, bleeding profusely. 

Nebula turned, and went after the easier enemies that were distracted by Kalinthe. A barrier of force wrapped around them, and Kalinthe felt a small vitality boost seconds before a glaive came down, bifurcating one of the black robed figures before throwing the corpse off to the side with a small flourish. “This one could use some assistance, Elli.” She called.

Elli gave a small nod, muscling in, and applying some pressure to one of the cuts as she swiftly wrapped bandages around the bloody flesh. When she finished with that, she took the tiniest of steps back; her hands covered in a dark material that was not distinguishable as blood, but, instead, some other substance. She did a small spin, beginning to dance. One of the remaining fighters beside Kalinthe turned to watch her in wonder and confusion; he was utterly mystified by the strange woman’s charms. 

Several arrows came whizzing by. One of them struck into the back of Nebula’s shoulder. She let out a grunt, closing her eyes against the pain in shock for a moment. When her eyes re-opened, she looked into the darkness outside, and saw figures running up to the entrance of the mill. She gulped, knowing that they were already outnumbered. This must be how it ends, then. She mentally sent a prayer to the Lord of Storms as her blood scattered about the ground. 

“Hey!” A voice called out from the incursion coming from outside. “Come on!” They ordered as a bolt struck into one of the robed figures with swords. 

Seconds later, one of those figures ran up. “Hurry up. Let’s get you to safety.” The man told them in a hurry. All of them, beaten and bloodied, just barely registered that this man was dressed in the garb of a town’s guard. None of them spoke. There was no consultation needed. They couldn’t win like this in a fair fight. They ran, some better than others, with their tails between their legs back to the keep to heal their wounds. 

As they neared the keep, Boar’s eyes glanced towards the sky. Night had fallen long ago, only smouldering fires lit the streets, but the moon hung there, large and bright. As they entered the heavily barred gates of the keep, just before they closed the adventurers safely inside, a shadow crossed his vision. One with a wingspan so large that it easily dwarfed the keep itself.


	3. Chapter 2

Boar grunted, babying an arrow wound to his shoulder from earlier, as he lifted a bundle of ballista bolts up the stone steps to the top of the keep. They’d been given maybe an hour to lick their wounds before death decided to come from above. He ran up the stone steps as quickly as he could. When he got to the top, he saw the North face of the keep had ten guards lined up with bows at the ready. The South was almost perfectly symmetrical. On the top of the Northeast and Northwest corners of the tower, two ballista stood loaded and at the ready. 

There was a silence that hung in the air as the dawn hung low behind the hills. It felt like any minute the sun might crest the ridge and end this hell. Boar took a deep breath to steady himself as he stood at the ready beside the Southern ballista. Kallinthe was primed, and ready to shoot. He was there to help aim. Beside them, a guard stood prepared to take orders in order to wheel around the massive siege weapon. 

In the distance, the denizens of Greenest could hear a rumbling growl, followed by the sound of beating wings. Small children down below in the keep as well as their mothers let out small whimpers of fear. They already knew what was coming. They had seen this more than once before, this night. The great blue dragon was coming back to cut the head off of the small resistance that they had left remaining. 

A shadow raced by in the dark sky, briefly overshadowing the moon. A breeze followed seconds later. Nebula opened her eyes, coming out from a brief moment of deep prayer. She stood beside the ballistae that the one known as Xanth was preparing to shoot, taking the initiative to adjust the trajectory to a more appropriate level as the guard beside them wheeled it around for them to aim in a more appropriate direction. Now, all Xanth had to do was wait for the opportune moment. 

Seconds later, the sizzling and zinging sound of lightning rang out with an almost muted booming of thunder from the discharge. In the next moment, the smell of ozone permeated the air before any of them could even process what really happened. Heads turned, and, in a blink, they all saw it. The entire Northern flank of the keep was decimated. Every single guard, men and women, gone. Dead. In and instant. They could smell the charred remains, and even moved earth. The very stones of the keep were blackened and destroyed. Some of them overturned, and thrown asunder. Debris fell with thumps down below, and ash alighted to the ground. The battle of Greenest had begun, and, already, it seemed- the dragon had won.

Kalinthe didn’t accept defeat. Not for a single moment. He didn’t miss a beat. He let loose the first of many ballista bolts. It went wide by a small margin, coming just short of the dragon’s underbelly, and arcing down to the ground somewhere hundreds of feet off in the distance. It was too dark, and everything too distracting, to pay it much mind. He was solely focused on one thing. “Load another!” He ordered, and a guard came to his aid almost instantly, moving the heavy iron into place while Boar helped him aim the device to get a better shot. They didn’t have much time before he would be back for another pass, and, the gods help them, they couldn’t afford to miss next time.

Xanth held his hand steady. Waiting. Always waiting for the perfect moment to strike. He had lived long. He knew more than the others. Had experienced more, and he knew. Dragons couldn’t just use their breath indiscriminately. For a moment, they had a reprieve from the worst of it. He was going to wait until he could see the whites of the dragon’s eyes.

Several guards on the Southern portion of the keep bolted from their positions. Some quietly, some screaming for the dragon to spare their lives. Seconds later, the dragon flew up to the battlements, stopping beside the Southernmost ballista. He took a swipe at Boar, getting a good hit in, but it was obvious that his real intent wasn’t for Boar but the siege weapon instead. He didn’t see them as a threat. He saw the weapons as a threat. 

After making its attacks, the dragon began to fly off, beating its massive wings, and, in that brief moment of weakness and distraction as he turned to make his next pass, a ballista bolt came careening from the other side of the tower. The sound of the projectile cutting through the air could be heard from those closest. It zipped right past Kalinthe’s face, and successfully carved a small hole through the vestigial flesh of it’s right wing. It let out a small roar as the wings began to beat faster and harder. The sounds of hard, pained breaths could be heard on the wind. They’d made it angry.

Kalinthe turned his head to look at the group working the second ballista. He opened his lips to tell off Xanth, but the boy beat him too it. In that dark and grisly voice of his, he gave a small, malicious smile before calling out almost too quietly to really be head. “Whoops.” The sound of his laughter following shortly thereafter like the morning’s bird calls. 

Nebula turned her head from the boy to the man in a bit of wonder before deciding that this was not the time to wonder. It was the time to focus, and for some gods be damned reason, “Ellie!” She ordered. “Get the fuck up here, and do some healing. The big guy is bleeding.”

Ellie seemed to appear out of nowhere from beneath the crest of the stairs, and helped to bandage up Boar as best as she could from the damage that he’d taken from the dragon. Behind her, one last guard ran by. He sounded like he was crying or, at the very least, whimpering as he ran for his very life. 

The great dragon did a large swooping circle around the keep, using his powerful wings to speed up, gaining quite a bit of velocity before charging back toward the Southernmost reaches of the keep. It opened its mighty maw, and a crackling could be seen and heard as the almost indescribable, terrifying view of whitish blue lightning with purple tinges could be seen forming in its mouth seconds before it expelled from between the gargantuan dragon’s razor sharp teeth in a line that completely decimated the remaining guards standing with them against it on the tower. 

Ellingsithertal turned, and saw the destruction. A nervous, bubbling laugh erupted from her mouth unbidden. The havoc that the dragon wreaked was impressive. She herself had moments of pride over the ability to manage as much, but  _ this _ . This was just too much. She gulped, and fought a sob. She wasn’t ready to die. Not like this.

Nebula helped Xanth to aim the ballista. They had one more good shot in them, but, damn it all, they needed to well and truly ground this motherfucker. And, if nothing else, she was good at slowing things down. She focused for a second, and the familiar bulwark appeared around her. A shimmering wall of protection, empowering those around her as she started to run towards where she thought and hoped the dragon would appear next. 

The dragon took a sharp bank left, and was back beside the tower to attempt destroying the other ballista in mere seconds. Seconds were all that Nebula needed. She took a huge leaping step onto one of the battlements, and leaped with all of her might towards the dragon, aiming for its back. She grabbed at it, gripping tightly onto whatever she could, and finding some poor, but enough, purchase on one of its dinner plate sized scales. Using her momentum, she swung up a leg, and was roughly on its back. Her heart was pounding, and her breaths short pants. But, she’d done it. A jerking motion tried to throw her, but she held fast. Until the next jerk threw her.

The dragon reared back, trying to divest himself of his unexpected rider, but what actually threw her was the motion he made when a ballista bolt shot directly into one of the sides of his chest. He roiled back in pain, and his eyes turned towards the Southern ballista, meeting directly with the amber ones of the man who had fired the arrow. Oh, the pathetic puddle he would be after he electrocuted the man to death. He flew forward briefly, intent on finishing the job, but deciding better of it. He was- injured- now. It would be best to leave now, and complete the job properly another time. At full strength. He swung low and beat his wings, turning to leave. There would be other days for fun, and he didn’t get to where he was now by being unwise.

Kalinthe’s hands were shaking with adrenaline as he watched the dragon fly off into the early morning’s light. It seemed that the sun had taken a recess, waiting until right as the dragon decided to turn tail before it made itself known. Now, in the light of the early morning and from the height of the keep, the destruction of Greenest could be seen. Smouldering buildings were plentiful along with scorch marks and bodies. As he assessed the horizon, figures began to march towards the town, coming from the nearby treeline. 

Foremost among them stood a tall, perhaps six to seven feet, scaled blue man, carrying a polearm. His purple armor with gold embellishments standing out among a sea of black cultist’s robes. They walked in sync down to surround the keep, especially that of the gates, and the half dragon, with a mighty horn protruding from the top of its head, looked up at the heroes standing up at the top, peeking out from behind the battlements. “We have you surrounded. Surrender now, and I will let you live on one condition.” He called out. 

The small group that had gathered coincidentally the night before along with a couple of scant remaining guards looked among themselves before none other than Xanth climbed up between two battlements to make up for his diminutive stature. “And, what is it exactly? This- condition?” He sneered the final word. 

The protruding teeth of the half dragon’s face curled upwards in a sinister smile. “I desire a fight. Fair. One on one. With one of you. What do you say? Take it,” he paused goadingly, “or leave it? It matters not to me whether I get my noble battle for the ages or a slaughter.”

The group atop the keep looked between each other once again, and briefly huddled together. Below on the ground, Nebula was missing- assumed dead or bleeding out. She would be no help, Elli took a step back, and waved her hands. “I can patch you up before you go out there, but I can’t do that.”

Xanth sighed, and nodded. “I’m tapped out for the day.”

Kalinthe nodded in agreement. “I’m out.”

All eyes turned curiously towards Boar who shuffled uncomfortably. He let out a heavy sigh, taking a long swig from his water skin that he sincerely hoped was much stronger than it actually was. “God, dammit. Fine. I’ll do it.” He grumbled, pushing his way to the edge of the tower. “Just give me a couple minutes.” He called down to the crowd of gathered cult members. He sounded irritable or agitated, possibly some combination thereof with something else mixed in there. Fear. This wasn’t how he imagined it all ending when he left Athkatla. He turned back around, and pointed towards Elli. “Fix me up. You don’t have very long.” He demanded.

Elli nodded, applying some herbs and wrapping his wounds as best she could given a couple of minutes. She didn’t take long before giving Boar a confident nod. “That’s all I’ve got.” She gave him a small smile that looked like an apology. A moment of understanding passed through their eyes. They were both terrifying right now.

With that, Boar tore his eyes from the woman, and heavily began to march his way down the steps, deeper into the keep. When he made it to the ground floor, he turned heavily towards the men who were at the ready to lift the portcullis, and open the barred and beamed gates. He nodded once, and, in a flurry of motion and activity, the gates to the keep opened. Boar was staring out, one small man into a sea of black robed, jeering cultists. He gulped, but tried not to move like he was in pain. Even though it hurt to breath at the moment, and each step was lancing agony. 

He looked down at his guns, and stepped forward into the center, perhaps 20 feet from the half dragon. He knew that his guns were useless now. He looked back at the man defiantly. “I’ll give you your battle on one condition.” He responded finally, using the man’s words against him.

“Oh? And, what is that?” He asked curiously, but his words sounded like they were toying with Boar, like this was  _ entertaining  _ to him. 

Boar threw his broken guns off to the side along with a sword. “Just you, and I. No weapons. A fair fight.” He replied, appealing to the words of the half-dragon from minutes earlier.

The blue scaled man’s thick tail swung side to side for a moment in excitement. His feet planting themselves squarely as he postured himself moments before he thrust his polearm deep into the ground. Almost so deeply that a normal man couldn’t retrieve it if necessary. The malicious smirk grew. “You have a deal.”

Boar nodded, raising his fists. “Call it.” He said, experimentally bouncing on the balls of his feet, trying to, at least, feign being at the ready.

The man nodded, and demanded that one of the cultists fire an arrow at his ‘go’. “When the arrow hits the ground, the fight begins.” He explained simply.

Boar nodded back his understanding, and he said a silent prayer to Waukeen to go to Mount Celestia for his troubles when this man killed him outright.

One massive, muscled and scaled arm raised, and lowered down. Seconds later, an arrow came down from the sky, landing almost perfectly between them. He took three, perhaps four, steps forward, rearing back his upper back and neck before lurching forward, and expelling a line of lightning that instantly singed everything that came near it. The grass below, the arrow, and Boar. 

Boar looked more than worse for the wear with that single hit. Boar pulled himself up, steeling himself as he ran up, letting loose several punches that didn’t seem to do anything to the other man. 

A bubbling laugh erupted from the half-dragon’s mouth. “Too bad. I was hoping for- better.” He taunted as two resolute punches struck into Boar. The first made him reel forward with pain to his gut. The second hit his sternum so hard that he lost his breath, and he fell back as darkness took him.


	4. Chapter 3

**_Maybe it was wishful thinking, the multiple head injuries, or the exhaustion that made me imagine even for the tiniest of seconds that a cult leader could have any sort of honor. Call it temporary insanity. In that moment, I just wanted to think that I stood some sort of fighting chance against a fresh opponent after several battles, an allnighter, and a dragon fight against that motherfucker’s daddy. Or, at least, I think that Lennithon was Cyanwrath’s father. If not, welp, that’s awkward, but too late now._ **

**_I remember waking up in the center of that god forsaken field. Hearing footsteps marching away in the distance, staring up at the blue sky and wishing the pain away. The paltry healing the city’s clerics could offer wasn’t enough, but it was all I would get. After a rest that was far too short, we were back at it._ **

**_Some scouts had followed the cult at a distance. They weren’t covering their tracks in the slightest, so the trail would be an easy follow. The governor, I’ve forgotten his name after all this time, hoped that we could recover some of the town’s riches, or, maybe, learn some more. I don’t blame him. I had left home to get my money back in one way or another. Money is one of those nice, intrinsic motivating things. It motivated me far more than I care to admit. Kept me going at times. So, so many times that I wanted to up and leave._ **

**_I learned and saw so many things on this journey. My faith and resolve were tested on more than one maddening occasion. Whether it was learning the truth about my companions. Not the supposed truth that they originally presented, but the real truths of their origins and beliefs._ **

**_After all of it, there is only one truth that I have learned._ **

**_I should’ve left._ **

* * *

Xanth impatiently waited, guarding over the group as they rested. He didn’t need to paltry release of sleep, but he used to. So, he, at least, understood the need for sleep. He leaned back against the stone wall of the keep. He was tired. Not in the way that he needed to close his eyes and visit unconsciousness. That was a very rare occasion for him. He usually only did that when he was in search of answers from his patron. No, this day, his muscles ached. His bones felt like they were grinding against each other. His head pounded. Cuts throbbed. Bruises blossomed under his skin. They might’ve come out on the other end of the siege alive, but they hadn’t won. Around the keep, he heard whispers. He always heard their words- when they least thought he was listening. They were starting to call them heroes. Nothing about what had happened last night had been heroic. 

As the sun moved high into the sky and began its descent downwards, he let out a small growl. It pained him to do it. He, too, needed time to heal, but they had slept long enough. Now was the time to eat, gather supplies, and leave with the setting sun. Tracking their quarry while they likely rested. He stood up, and grunted, stretching before he woke the group.

Their ‘morning’ meal was that of dried rations, and eaten in near complete silence. Looks were shared between the group, but no conversation. Not a single one of them looked happy. All were sore, and exhausted. An air of defeat hung about them as they began walking in the direction the cultists had marched, following a large swath of stomped and destroyed grasslands. Their numbers seemed innumerable simply from the look of the ground. Doubt and fear clutching tightly to their chests. 

Hours passed, and it grew dark. Nebula squinted into the darkness. Without the use of a torch, all she had to see by was the moon, which, last night, seemed to light up the sky. Tonight, it felt less so. She kept her eyes on the ground, and watched where her feet were falling. She couldn’t afford another injury. Another mistake after the last. She’d nearly died, but, thankfully, Talos’s blessings hadn’t run out on her yet. She stole a glance at the sky. There were maybe some clouds up there, though, it was a little hard to tell. Still, clouds were enough for her. A symbol of hope. 

Boar glanced from the healer to the strange woman with the glaive. He didn’t know much about them, but he was stuck with them for the time being. Among the five of them, those two seemed to be the most normal at the moment. His eyes stealing a sidelong glance over at the boy and the man in the dark robes. Again, he didn’t know much about them, but he didn’t get good feelings coming from them either. He felt well and truly stuck at the moment, and it wasn’t a feeling he relished given where he’d all too recently come from. He took in a deep breath, and let out a sigh. “Alright.” He stated simply. “Name’s Boar. From Athkatla. I’m looking to make enough money to find a nice home and retire.”

The white haired blue woman with the Glaive strapped to her back glanced over before turning her attention back to where her feet were falling again. “I’m Nebula. I sailed to the mainland from Mihair a while back. There’s just nothing left there for me. Have been doing some trapping along the coast ever since.” She replied matter of factly, giving a small shrug.

Kalinthe turned his head from the trail they were tracking towards the two that were talking. “Do keep your voices low.” He asked them seriously. “Anybody could hear you.”

“And, who made you king of the world?” Boar asked instantly and pointedly.

“Oh,” Kalinthe grinned, now. His pearly white teeth almost menacing in the darkness. “I do prefer Lord, and, in a roundabout way, Baalzebul.”

Boar raised an eyebrow, but shook his head. He didn’t know what this guy was on about. The part of his brain that liked to store away information for later categorized the name, but he didn’t pay it any more mind than that. 

Xanth didn’t react to the name. It was one he was familiar enough with, but his lightly glowing eyes glanced over at the ladies. He was curious to see if either of them recognized the name. Somebody knowledgeable in his realm could be useful. What he found interested him very much. Nebula recognized the name. Not the one he’d expected. 

Elli turned to look at Nebula’s stern face. “You alright?” She asked curiously.

“Yes, I just recognize that name.” She glanced over at Kalinthe and Xanth. “From down South.” She added darkly.

“Oh, good.” Kalinthe’s smile widened as he turned his attention back to the horizon. His feet stopped, and he lifted a hand to inform the others to do the same. His eyes squinted. “Xanth, your eyes are better. Are you seeing what I’m seeing?”

Xanth looked from Kalinthe off towards where the taller man was looking. Unlike Kalinthe, he didn’t need to squint to see better. He could see just fine in these conditions. “Yes, there’s a campfire ahead. A low one, and some bodies around it. Probably lesser cultists.”

Hearing this, Boar nodded, taking lead. “How do we want to roll on this, then?”

“We see if we can sneak up, listen to what they are talking about, and dispatch them, if necessary.” Nebula butted in. “We need to get all of the information we can out of these assholes.” Elli’s fingers twitched at her sides, and Nebula caught the quieter woman’s movement. She took a deep breath in hopes of calming them both. “Calm down. Remember how beat up we got? We need you at your full strength.”

Elli glared at Nebula for a moment before deflating. She looked disappointed. “Fine. You’re right.”

Nebula nodded gratefully. “Thank you, Elli. Next time. I promise.” She assured the other woman with a steady voice. When she turned to look back at the small campsite, her eyes caught Kalinthe’s. They were alight with interest. Too bad they didn’t have the time or privacy to get into that right now. She pulled her glaive off of her back, and crouched down slightly. “Step where I step.” She told them urgently, if quietly. When Boar gave her a skeptical look, she deadpanned. “Trapper. Remember?” Then, she began to choose her steps carefully, being sure to find places that would make the least possible noise as they approached the small copse of trees that the cultists were resting in. 

Xanth took the place directly behind Nebula since his eyes were best. His eyes closing frequently in hopes of increasing his other senses. He wanted to hear what these people had to say. Soon, he was rewarded for the efforts when the gutteral sounds of the draconic language could be heard. 

“Those damned humans.” One complained, throwing a small bone into the fire.

“They treat us like we’re worthless. Right up until they need extra arms and legs to do the work.” Another added.

Now that they were closer, the bodies of the speakers could be seen. Two kobolds along with a handful of others could be seen surrounding a smouldering fire. 

A third kobold spoke. This one was pacing back and forth behind one of the group. “They’ll get theirs one day soon.”

Xanth muttered a spell under his breath, and informed the confused looking Nebula. Given that all of these cultists seemed to speak the draconic language, deduction was beginning to take over, and he was starting to get a more clear picture of exactly  _ which _ cult they were dealing with at the moment. He looked around at the group, trying to see what the plan was. That question was answered when Boar drew his guns, and Kalinthe’s scythe silently blinked into existence in his hand. A smirk pulled at his lips, and he waved a hand, firing off a bolt of force that hit one of the kobolds straight in the back, making him topple forward into the fire. 

The other kobolds sat upright, and turned toward the direction the sudden disruption had come from. One of them drew a jagged dagger from its hip, and another pulled out a shortbow. Two more stood at the read with shortswords that looked like they had seen better days. They were slightly too large for the smaller sized kobolds almost as if they were salvaged weapons. In fact, more than likely, that was the truth. An arrow whizzed from the short bow, and into the bushes that the party was hiding in. Luckily, the brush was giving them some cover, and the arrow battered the foliage before uselessly falling to the ground. 

Kalinthe took the opportunity to run out, striking down the nearest Kobold holding a shortsword in but a single swipe of his mighty scythe. One of his hands extended, twisting to the side while slowly turning into a fist, and a hazy, formless see-through white substance seemed to float out of the body, and into Kalinthe or the scythe. It was difficult to tell which.

Back in the brush, Boar’s guns fired, having much more stopping power than a simple arrow, the bullets tore through the leaves. One of them striking a kobold in the shoulder, and leaving it bleeding. 

Nearby, Nebula ran out, stopping just short of the very same kobold that Boar had just struck, moving her mighty glaive down with a single swift, decisive stroke, and felling it. 

With only two left, Elli, who was still successfully hiding in the brush between Boar and Xanth, looked thoroughly disappointed. She wanted to help, but Nebula had asked her not to fight. “Do. No. Harm.” She whispered to herself. “Do no harm.” She broke the treeline, and enemy eyes moved to settle on her. She saw a dagger come barrelling towards her from the hand of the nearby kobold, and did a spinning pirouette to dodge out of the way, landing gracefully on her two feet. “Do no haaaaarm.” She repeated one last time in sing-song, dragging out the word.

Mere moments later, with the sound of one more blast of gunfire, the muttering of a single spell, and two weapons slicing deeply into flesh, the remaining two kobolds were dead. Nebula’s eyes moved up from the place where Kalinthe’s blade had killed the kobold she’d struck first, seeing the same odd phenomena from earlier with that strange ethereal material moving from the body and seemingly into him. Her eyes squinted intuitively. Curiosity was striking her. Things were starting to click together, but only time and, perhaps, a moment of quiet privacy where she could ask one simple question would tell. For now, she would keep her growing suspicions to herself.

Kalinthe’s eyes moved up from the body. He gave it a small, respectful nod, giving Nebula another similar nod before turning around in full 360. He pointed with his scythe towards the obvious continuance of the trail. “Let’s move along, shall we?”

Nebula gave Kalinthe a nod of mutual understanding, but her eyes were sharper, finding something that his inexperienced ones didn’t see. She strode over to a different part of the clearing. She pointed towards the partially flattened dirt and grass as well as a couple of broken low-hanging twigs. “Somebody sent a group off this way. If it were me, it would be to send an ambush to set up.”

“Then, we’ll have to be careful.” Boar responded, striding over to better see what she was pointing out. “Good find.”

“Thank you.” She responded with an austere tone.

Xanth looked around at the two different directions that they could now take. “Perhaps,” he started, head tilting to the side as he said the word, “it would be wise to take the bait. Follow the main group, knowing we will be in for a surprise.” His head tilted back as his words lilted, and he sneered the final word since it wasn’t possible to be surprised if you were expecting such.

Elli rested her fingers on her chin, and tapped a finger on her cheek. “That actually makes a lot of sense. I’m inclined to agree.” She responded. “We were tasked with finding the whole group and not a small contingent, after all.”

“It’s a smart plan.” Boar shrugged, shaking his head a little bit. His countenance looked partially defeated. He didn’t have any better ideas.

Nebula stood up straight, and looked at the main path with some disdain. The idea of purposely walking into a trap didn’t appeal. “Very well.”

Kalinthe nodded in agreement. “After you, then, fearless leader.” He gestured towards the treeline they would be following much the same as the previous cultists. A small bow at his waist. Almost playfully, and definitely mocking. His amber eyes settling dully on Xanth’s seriously. At a second glance, the light in his eyes danced with delight. 

Xanth walked forward, looking up at the taller man. His low, grizzly voice darker than usual. “Right.” He nearly growled as he passed by, turning his eyes and attentions away from the other man. He had bigger things to worry about at the moment. For now, their agreement stood. 


	5. Chapter 4

Boar followed towards the back of the group. It was still dark out, and he was struggling to see. Thankfully, the moon was doing him a lot of favors at the moment. He hefted his big gun, and peered as far off into the distance as the darkness would allow. If he was correct, then, there were plateaus not too much further off in the distance. The perfect place to find a choke point to create an ambush. “Big hills in the distance.” He offered at a harsh whisper. 

At the front of the group, Nebula gave a nod- suddenly on high alert. She pulled her glaive off of her back, using the blunt end as a makeshift walking stick. She wanted it out and at the ready. Wasting time was how mistakes happened, and she didn’t make mistakes. Not strategic ones, at least. 

As they got closer to the mesas in the distance, her eyes cut up the rocky formations, trying to find a place where archers could be hiding, but, dammit all, her eyes were terrible in this low light. It was a weakness she didn’t care to admit. She stubbornly remained quiet, leading the group. They stepped between two sheer cliff faces, marching single file as the terrain forced them to do. It wasn’t until Xanth saw movement above them that she realized exactly how badly she’d screwed them over by not speaking up. She whirled her glaive around, prepared to defend herself, and protect the others. As wont as she was to admit it, she had made a mistake with this one.

Xanth let out a bored sigh. He stood at the center of their single file line just behind Kalinthe. He waved a hand, and a bolt of force went barrelling up towards an archer that was kneeling behind cover above them. It was a bit troublesome that he could hardly run past Nebula and Kalinthe in the little space that they had, so he grabbed hold of Elli’s upper arm, and, in the flash of a door opening, they appeared up on the rocks behind three of the archers. His hand let go of Elli, and a maul appeared in it instead. A wide smile grew on his face at the look of horror the archer’s gave them as they turned around and let their bolts fly.

Down below, Kalinthe brushed past Nebula with some force in a gambit to make it to an opponent in melee. His sword was glowing with bright white-hot light, searing with heat. Although the man seemed strong and burly, the brush almost felt like nothing to her, which drew her eyebrows in together. This Kalinthe guy just created more and more questions for her. He moved his scythe down in one decisive slash, melting a significant chunk of his opponent’s armor, and another slash brought him to a knee. He raised his scythe to make one final, decisive blow, but a booming noise came from behind him.

In an instant, a bullet struck into Kalinthe’s foe let out a squelching noise as his body felt into a bloody heap on the dirt. In the back, nearly forgotten, stood Boar, maneuvering his gun up the plateau towards one of the unopposed archer’s on the left, taking a shot, and missing as it struck the dirt just below his cover. 

Kalinthe turned his head towards the blacksmith. It was hard to get a good look at his features given the time of night and his dark robes, but it was clear that he looked disappointed. “Fine, then! I claim the next one.”

Up on the plateau with Xanth Elli looked around. Their group really hadn’t been injured at all, and Nebula was way down there. She hazarded a glance towards the ground. That was a long drop she wanted nothing to do with. She grabbed a dagger from her hip that she sometimes used to gather herbs for healing, and tossed the scabbard on the ground, reeling her hand back over her head, and stabbing down into the archer closest to her. She didn’t care that Xanth was also going in for an attack on the cultist. 

As soon as the dagger was out with the intent in mind, she categorized a lot of things. She saw several locations, weak points in the body. The neck in particular drew her attention, and the dagger rushed down into the fleshy bit where neck met shoulder. A spurt of blood rushing out with pressure in an instant, coating the blue woman’s skin and the ground all around as well as the nearby Xanth with the red liquid. “Ha- ha- ha.” Her voice bubbled up. “Do- do no- harm. Do- no harm.” 

Down on the ground, Nebula saw the glint of the dagger come down, and the resulting mess. She groaned. There went Elli’s healing ability. Why did she decide to work with the healer who liked to hurt people? Oh, right. It was better than no healer. She saw that there was absolutely no chance of running up and getting to an enemy by following Kalinthe, so she decided to get a little creative, moving as far to the right as possible, and wall jumping to the left. She did this back and forth until she had enough wiggle room to jump fully over at the archers on the left, swiping down at the nearest one on her way down. Unfortunately, the effort from the jump, and the odd trajectory of coming down threw off her aim, and she missed by a wide margin as she came down, tucking and rolling into the alcove in the plateau wall. She rolled up, standing with some effort as she winced. 

Nebula shook her ankle that she’d just tweaked, wielding her glaive defensively now as four cultists closed in. Two with swords and another two stepping back to take shots with their arrows. She was able to just move her weapon in order to block one slash of a shortsword when another came from behind her, and got a good slash in on her left arm that had her scrambling to use the other to apply pressure to stop the bleeding. Talos, it was bleeding bad. In her distraction, she took an arrow to her shoulder, and another to her thigh. She fell to a knee, just barely keeping hold of consciousness and her focus. 

Kalinthe let out a frustrated sigh. He’d thought that the genasi was a better tactician than to jump into a fray outnumbered, but here he was watching her clutch onto her miserable life. He had originally intended to take out the ones on the right with Xanth first, but, obviously, that had changed. He strolled up the rough steps, now, taking them two at a time, which made him look like he was floating as his cloak billowed out behind him in the darkness. His gait was purposeful, if slow as a mild attempt at punishment. A hand waved over his scythe, and it began to glow again as it came down, slashing into the shoulder of one of the archers. 

Blood poured from the wound, and the archer turned to react towards his attacker as his free hand dropped his weapon in order to grip the fresh wound. Before he could make any move against the dark robed man, the scythe came down one more time, cutting his life short. The body slumped, and the scythe’s blade came out red as a near-translucent spirit escaped from the body seemingly unbidden before flowing into Kalinthe’s willing, outstretched hand. He looked up from the body and soul to see Nebula looking worse for wear. There was no time for distraction. With work still left to do, he raised his scythe back up at the ready. These cultists were in his way, and they did taste oh so delicious. 

Behind Kalinthe, in the crevice on the other plateau, Xanth rotated his body slightly, taking aim at a new target that Elli hadn’t destroyed entirely with but a single strike to the jugular. His maul glowed with a purplish white eldritch darkness as it struck down into the unfortunate cultist that got into his way. He watched as the force of the strike sent the man falling back, careening onto the awaiting ground with a sickening crunch steps in front of where Boar was lining up a shot further down the path where another cultist was running away in an attempt to inform what he assumed was the rest of the cult about their approach. 

He held his breath for a beat before pulling the trigger, and letting the bullet fly. A flash of red appeared in the distance, illuminated only by the scant moonlight that could be seen from in between the two great mesas. The body of the cultist toppled ass over teakettle, flopping uselessly to the ground. A satisfied smirk came over Boar’s face. 

He didn’t relish in killing, but, when it was for the greater good, he guessed that Waukeen would forgive him. Besides, the cult had taken quite a lot of coin from Greenest. The goddess of coin could appreciate its safe return; he reasoned.

Up above, Elli’s unnerved eyes turned towards the third cultist on their side of the crevasse. She held her dagger tightly in her hand, going in for the kill. This time, she really wanted to inflict some pain, but, this time, she didn’t have the element of surprise. Her enemy used his distance to his advantage, taking a well aimed shot at her hand, which made her drop the knife. She winced as she pulled the arrow from her hand, looking at the tip, and gasping in shock when she saw that it had a hollow tip. A searing began to course through her veins as she felt the obvious poison take hold of her body, which locked up. “Ah!” She yelled out in surprise as her body teetered.

Nebula grunted in pain. Darkness threatened at the edges of her vision, but she was not going down without taking some bitches down with her. She couldn’t keep hold of her glaive like this, so she let it drop, stomping forward, and grabbing onto a cultist’s shirt with her wounded arm. In the back of her mind, she categorized the pain of moving a limb with the arrow still deeply embedded in the flesh, but she didn’t have time to deal with that. Her other hand reached out, and her eyes glowed with lightning as her hand began to crackle with the same energy. 

“This one’s for you, Lord of Storms.” She muttered, grabbing his throat as his body shook with the magical energy. Her eyes faded back to normal, looking into the terrified man’s eyes as she felt another arrow strike her in the back. She coughed up blood, and fell forward, taking the cultist with her. 

Boar saw the two bodies fall to the ground in front of him. There was a lot of falling bodies at the moment for his tastes. He wasn’t quite fond of that, but it did leave him with extra opportunities for better shots when they stopped blocking his damned shots. He took a shot at one of the two swordsmen up above him with Kalinthe, but it was tough. There was a lot of cover, especially when they were close to the wall of these crevices. He took a breath to steady his hand only to hear a click. “Ah, fuck!” He yelled in frustration as he tossed the gun to the ground, and grabbed the other one out of his pocket dimension.

Xanth looked at the clearly suffering Elli, and shrugged slightly. There wasn’t much that he could do to help her. She was the healer. Instead, he turned his attention to the one with the interesting poisoned arrows. He stepped over the dead cultist’s body, and nearly skipped over to him, bashing him hard in the knee twice. When the man fell down with the blow, Xanth grabbed his robes, and he looked deep into his eyes. “Now, tell me everything you know about the cult, and I might let you keep your miserable life.” His grisly voice muttered darkly.

The cultist was so close to Xanth’s face that seemed to reject any of the nearby light, and his eyes that glowed. He had only one option beyond Xanth’s demand. He wailed out in fear, trying harder to get away. 

Xanth gave a frustrated sigh. “Dammit.” He complained, hitting the man’s head as hard as he could. “Hopefully, you’ll forget that.”

Kalinthe swiped twice more, and he was rewarded by collecting two more souls. He closed his eyes for a moment, and, when he opened them, they glowed with magic for the briefest of flashes. Today was a productive day. Myrkul must be pleased. He flicked his wrist, and his scythe blinked back out of existence. He did a quick assessment of the damages before picking up his feet, and going to help bring the unfortunate ladies back from the brink. It wasn’t their time yet. He’d decided as much, and that was reason enough. 


	6. Chapter 5

After a short rest that probably should’ve been a long rest, under cover of darkness, they arrived at the encampment. It was a large hollow in a plateau. It was hard to get a good beat on exactly what the birds eye of the area would look like, but it was probably a rough horseshoe shape. A couple of men wearing simple leathers, and nothing as gaudy as the cultist robes they’d seen before could be seen moving into a crevice large enough to walk average sized carts or beasts of burden. Nebula took this opportunity to step back, and point out her observations to the others. 

Xanth looked around the tall woman and her arsenal of weapons to get a better look at their surroundings. “One of us should look at what we’re walking into first.” He told them wisely. 

The group of five all looked at each other for several moments. Eyes turned from one person or other before finally Boar let out a sigh. “I’ll do it. I look the most normal.” He looked aggravated by the idea altogether as he placed the guns on his person in his arsenal pocket dimension to help blend in even better. With that, his eyes became alert, and his expression hard as he started to walk with a masculline swagger towards where Nebula had pointed at the hunters bringing game into the camp.

He turned into the chokepoint, and walked into the area. He let out a small gasp under his breath when he realized how large the area they’d chosen was. It was dark, but he easily counted the light of at least five fires in the area. He unconsciously took a step back. This was way bigger than anything that the five of them could handle. His eyes darted all around, seeing that a guard tower was all too close. He didn’t like the idea of possibly being seen by them right off the bat. When he turned, he was glad that nobody was around to see his nervous gulp. There was no way that this ended well. 

“Place is huge.” He told the other four in a matter of fact manner that seemed to betray his nerves to Xanth and Kalinthe, at least. “Can’t believe I’m saying this, but we might need to split up to get as much information as possible.”

The pairs both gave each other glances, sharing silent conversations. Nebula’s eyes met Elli’s and there was an incredibly charged moment there where it looked like Nebula was silently threatening Elli with her life if she decided to do anything stupid all while Elli smiled back in a way that told everybody that she wasn’t scared in the least. Meanwhile, Kalinthe looked at Xanth in a warning manner. It was a very similar conversation they were having, and Xanth’s look back at Kalinthe told everybody exactly what they needed to know. Xanth was going to do exactly what he thought was best in the moment regardless of what Kalinthe ultimately wanted. 

With the unspoken conversations had, Nebula and Kalinthe looked at each other, nodding in understanding. They were both in very similar situations at the moment. “We’ll go in as a unit and split up from there.” Kalinthe explained in his low, melodic voice, walking into the slowly fading darkness toward the entrance to the cult’s base.

He was swiftly followed by Nebula, Elli, Xanth, and, finally, Boar who pulled out a gun from his arsenal, and held it in two hands in front of his chest. “Waukeen guide me to a damn tavern after this mess.” He complained under his breath as they made their way in, and started to split up. 

As the last in the group, he got to see where the others chose to go before deciding on an avenue himself. Up at the front of the group, Kalinthe grabbed Xanth’s shoulder, and the two disappeared into a glowing, magical door that he assumed took them towards the other end of the chasm. After that, Elli and Nebula hung a right, staying closer to the relative safety that the distance from the entrance gave them. They were the smart ones in his books, if a little safe. 

After seeing the rest separate, he decided on taking the middle ground for himself, walking to the right of a ramp that would’ve taken him directly into the sights of a guard tower. Instead of taking the somewhat easier terrain, he hoisted himself up to the next level, and walked up to the nearest tent. He lowered an ear much closer to the material, listening. He didn’t know much, but, one thing he did know with certainty. Sometimes, information was its own currency.

Nebula chose the two closest tents while Elli insisted on taking the tents that were slightly further away. She didn’t know why, but that insistence made her nervous. Damn literal bloody healer. She shook her head in order to clear the thought, kneeling down in the shadows of one tent, and listening intently. Quite a lot of the conversation that she heard was in that same, guttural language that they’d been hearing. She rolled her eyes. It was easy enough to guess what it was they were speaking. Draconic. Dragon cultists must speak dragon. That made the most sense. Unfortunately, it made this new job more difficult for her. Why couldn’t they be elemental cultists? She could speak that. 

Occasionally, she could hear some words in common. “It will get better. Keep your head down. The dragons will treat us with respect. The humans are just fodder.” The words were broken up over several minutes between what sounded like bites of food and chewing, and it was hard to tell whether they were from one person or not. 

“I’m sick of following their orders.” Another replied. “They all look the same to me.”

“Same here. Damn them all to the hells.” Came possibly the first voice with a dark chuckle. “The only good ones around here are the ones we caught.”

Nebula straightened up as a devious smirk came about her face. She opened up the flap of the tent seconds later with a purposely dramatic swoosh. “Hello there.” She greeted with a menacing and level gaze. “Do tell. What exactly were you all gabbing about. Scintillating conversation, I’m sure.” She sneered, looking from one set of eyes to another, and watching as fear flashed on each individual set of eyes. 

One of the kobolds prostrated himself on the floor. “We’re sorry, my lady. We didn’t mean nothing by it. Forgive us.”

She assessed him stoically for a moment before a lopsided smirk pulled at the corner of her lips. “Very well. You are forgiven for your words, since they don’t match your actions, this time. Now, tell me, where is the tent of prisoners? I want to play with the toys.”

Another kobold extended a single finger. It was shaking like a leaf in the wind. “Over- over there.” He stuttered.

Nebula looked them over. She was about to say, ‘thank you’ before she realized that one of the more abusive cultists would definitely not say any such things. Instead, she gave each of them one final withering look, kicking the third kobold off of his stool, and stormed off in the direction that they had pointed. In the darkness, it was difficult for her to see much of anything until she was nearly on top of the second tent. Luckily, she wasn’t encroaching on what Elli was doing. This one was supposed to be her tent as well. 

In front of the second tent stood one angry looking cultist who stood at attention, but looked bored beyond reason. She took the opportunity to hold her head high, and demand in an authoritative voice. “You’re relieved. Go rest.” 

The cultist looked her up and down, seeming initially suspicious before giving up entirely in mere seconds. He gave her a nod, striding off into the darkness towards an unknown destination on the second level of the encampment. 

With him gone, Nebula swiftly let herself into the tent, assessing the situation to find ten humans resting. They were all resting. Some of them curled up in balls. Others sitting up and leaning against each other. All of them were chained together. She knelt down to look at the chain more closely. She didn’t think that her weapons could do much against that, but she would have to give it a try. Her movement and actions awoke several of the prisoners, and a couple looked simply murderous at her closeness. “Oh, stop it. I’m your rescue party, you dolts.” She scoffed.

With that, she placed a ring of the chains on a nearby stool, and tried ramming her blade into the wood in an attempt to get some leverage to pry the rings open. This went on for several minutes before she was panting with exertion, and two of the prisoners looked and sounded like they were going to start laughing at her. She did not like that look coming from somebody in their pathetic positions. A hard look fell into place on her face, and she took a scroll out of her pack. She’d been saving it for a rainy day. 

“You two, stand here and here.” She ordered, stepping back slightly herself, and making sure that the others were another step away before she read from the odd script of the magical scroll, doing her best not to stutter. After only a few seconds, the scroll burst into flames, and a dagger of ice drove down into the lock that was keeping them trapped here. Except, when it destroyed the lock, the dagger shattered and splintered out, hitting the two prisoners that dare imagine mocking her. They already looked worse for the wear. Now, they fell limp and bloodied to the ground. She wiped her face to cover her small smile, and let out a little sob. “Oh, no. I didn’t mean to do it like that.” She sniffled sadly, hoping she seemed convincing.

Boar realized quickly from sneaking peeks into the tent and listening over the course of about a minute that he was outside of the mess tent, and was excited to find that none of the ones that he could steal glances at were wearing robes. He didn’t think that the small rags that they called clothing would fit his build, anyway. He decided to flank back around to the front so that he could go inside to actually listen to what was going on up close and personal. 

When he got around to the front, he saw one man raise a hand, but it was hard to tell what gesture he was making in the darkness and shadow coming from the light in the tent. “Praise Tiamat.” 

The guard at the front of the tent nodded, and let him pass without a word. Boar nodded to himself. He could do that. He hoped. With a confident gait, he stepped forward, holding five fingers forward how he thought he saw the gesture before. “Praise Tiamat.” He stated simply, waiting for the nod of the guard as he held his breath. When he received it, he stepped inside, deciding that, if he could get ale here, there was nothing in the heavens or the hells that could possibly stop him from imbibing at this point. 

At the back of the camp, Kalinthe and Xanth separated instantly after arriving. Xanth walked instantly towards the biggest and most grand tent like a moth to flame while Kalinthe decided that he would do best checking on a tent closest to what looked like the mouth of a cave. 

Xanth did a full circle around the tent that he’d chosen. He could hear the low murmur of voices, but not nearly as loud as he’d hoped. After seeing the full enclosure, he decided on the most likely spot, lowering an eye to what he hoped was a decent enough crack to get a good look. In the darkness, it was impossible to see his lightless skin, that seemed to swallow all light, let alone the smile that started to pull at his lips. With the wave of a hand, he was inside the tent, hidden under a table. He ducked underneath fully, using the tablecloth to his advantage as cover. 

A pair of blue clawed feet paced back and forth on the earthen floor. “We have to think that those heroes will try to meddle in our business again. We need to move it. There’s too much, now, to lose.”

“A trip north now will take much time and effort. Rezmir hasn’t ordered anything yet. Let us bide our time.” Came a new voice. This one came with brown laced boots and red cloaks that hung low to the ground. A staff moved in synch with these feet, obviously being used as a walking stick.

Xanth’s eyebrows rose under his cowlings. He’d lived long enough to know better than many that a red magic user such as this one was bad news. He didn’t like the idea of Thay getting involved with his cult. No, he couldn’t let smart ones into the fold with their own agendas. He needed the cult dumb and run by fanatics. He covered his mouth to mask a growl. This was terrible news.

“Damn Rezmir. Mark my words, and be ready. We have to stay vigilant.” The blue feet stopped, and turned to look more fully at the red cloaked ones. “Go tell him of my suspicions. Ask for our next orders.”

A deep sigh rang through the room. “Very well.” There was a silence as the staff glowed for a few seconds before it and its master disappeared altogether. 

Nearby, Kalinthe watched from the shadows as vessel after vessel that seemed to bare heavy cargo was carted into the cave. His eyes assessing easily in the darkness, though he could already see the light of day starting to tug at the horizon. It had been many hours, and the sun was perhaps an hour away. He watched for several long minutes with a patience that a normal mortal never possessed. His arms crossed as he watched what looked like large black boulders being moved into the caves. Finally, he decided that he’d seen enough, walking back towards their rendezvous point with measured steps in order to avoid looking suspicious. 

The group meandered their way one by one to the place outside of the cult’s space where they’d agreed to meet, and, one by one, each was greeted to the odd sight of one Ellingsithurtal feeding a healing potion or otherwise tending to a scuffed up and heavily bandaged half-elven man with short black hair and a goatee. She gave each of them a knowing smile, and simply started to skip off from whence they game once the group was all gathered back together along with the freed prisoners. 


	7. Chapter 6

A bedroll was laid out on the floor of the shrine to Chauntea. The half-elf, whom they’d learned was named Leosin Erlanthar, was spooning some broth into his mouth, and the group of five was gathered around him. “There’s still much more to learn about the cult’s activities.” He told them. “If you all go and explore the inside of the cavern and meet me in Elturel, I will pay each of you one hundred fifty gold pieces.”

“Done.” Elli nodded without a moment’s thought or hesitation. She looked at her companion. “What? I need money to make my potions.” She asked incredulously.

“I was going to agree as well, but it’s generally acceptable to ask.” Nebula responded bluntly. She looked over at the other three. “What about you?”

“I’m already long past the due date for my delivery. Might as well make it worth it.” Boar shrugged. 

Xanth spoke up next. “This plan suits me well enough.”

“Aye.” Kalinthe agreed, looking down at Xanth with something like curiosity. He had been around the supposed boy for long enough to know that he was up to something. He just wasn’t sure exactly what that was yet or if he should be worried. 

Nebula watched the exchange between the dark pair with interest. The way the smaller one talked was strange. Like he was older than he seemed to be outwardly, but she couldn’t quite put her finger on it. He just seemed like a very precocious child to her. She tore her mind away from the conundrum that was the child to hear the very end of the conversation. Damn her curiosity, sometimes.

Leosin placed his bowl down, and rested back against the wall. “Thank you for your service to the realm. You all are real heroes. I hear the whispers. What they’re starting to call you. The Heroes of Greenest.” He gave them a genuine smile, but, before any of them could respond properly, a growl emerged from Xanth who turned on his heel, and stormed out of the door.

“What crawled up his ass?” Boar asked Kalinthe.

Kalinthe didn’t bother looking away from where Xanth had disappeared off to. “I would simply recommend  _ not _ using that word as a descriptor when he is involved.” His voice more of a low lilt than its usual quiet melody at the moment. He turned to give Leosin a small bow. “It’s been a pleasure.” 

The half-elf bowed his head in respectful reply. “Likewise. Safe travels.”

With that, the group gathered their wits, and began to shuffle their way out of town. As they were walking with just the four of them further and further from Greenest, Elli got an anxious look about her face. “What about your friend?” She asked Kalinthe.

Kalinthe didn’t look away from their roughly beaten path. “He doesn’t need to rest the same as the rest of us. He knows where we’re headed. He’ll catch up. Xanth is more than capable on his own.”

Nebula thought about Kalinthe’s words, categorizing them for later. She had a lot of questions for him, but, once again, this was not the appropriate time to ask them. Most of what she wanted confirmation of required a closed door and possibly a pint of ale. She let out a deep sigh. She wished she understood more without having to ask all these questions, but, like her, they were holding things back. They had secrets, too. 

As promised by Kalinthe, Xanth reappeared while they were taking a short rest to eat rations. She looked at the boy, and saw raw emotion still left in his eyes. A part of her wanted to help him somehow with what little she could do. She looked down, and saw blood on his knuckles. She knew those emotions all too well, and found herself standing up. She placed a hand on his shoulder. “Come on. Let’s get you cleaned up.” She offered.

Xanth’s eyes glowed perhaps a little brighter, and his brows furrowed together. “No.” His grizzled voice replied slowly. His feet stopped. He wouldn’t allow her to guide him. He wouldn’t allow her to treat him like a child. He stepped out of Nebula’s clutches, and walked to the edge of the small clearing they were occupying. “If I need healing, I’ll ask the doctor. Grab your things. We’re already far enough behind thanks to the trip back.”

There was a collective sigh among the group, but it was true. They needed to catch up. Boar packed the remains of his rations back up, and was the first back on the trail, swiftly followed by the rest of the party. Back behind him, he could hear a quiet argument between Elli and Nebula over Xanth. Of course, the creepy boy would command the attention of this group. He rolled his eyes at the mere thought of it.

“You were going to clean his wounds without me?” Elli asked Nebula pointedly.

“He needed help, and wasn’t asking for it.” Nebula retorted.

“Clearly not.” Elli scoffed in reply, taking quicker steps, and walking ahead of the genasi, leaving Nebula towards the back of the pack with only Kalinthe behind her now. She thought about that for a moment, and slowed down enough for him to catch up with her. They walked in silence for what was easily half an hour before Nebula finally broke the silence. “When we have time, I have questions.”

The dark robed man, turned amber eyes towards the blue skinned woman. “But, of course.” He responded with a wide grin. His voice sounded almost excited by the prospect. “Anything for the lady.” He teased.

Nebula rolled her eyes, and gave him a playful push. “Oh, fuck off.” She responded, shaking her head, and walking ahead- satisfied with the fact that she would, eventually, get her answers.

By the time the sun was hanging low in the sky and the colors of the sunset were streaking the blue skies red and purplish hues, Boar, who was still leading the party, stopped as they approached the cult’s encampment. He looked back at the group. “Are you all ready?” He asked seriously in a business-like fashion. He didn’t know about the rest of them, but he didn’t intend to get in too deep on this adventure. As soon as it was convenient to do so, he was going to finish his last guild mission, and go find some normal fucking adventurers to work with. This group was ridiculous. 

Xanth stepped beside Boar, and nodded, eyes on the prize in the distance, watching to see if any cultists came around the corner. After a moment, though, his eyes squinted slightly. “Do you see the ground heading North? Something’s strange about it.”

Boar went up on his tiptoes, thinking that, maybe, the angle would help his sight a little bit better. After only a moment, he lowered back down. “No, not really. I need to be closer. Your eyes are better, kid.”

Xanth grumbled, and shook his head as he walked off towards what he’d seen on the ground. Damn them. Damn them all. He was not a child. He did a quick glanced down the choke point entrance into the cult’s hidey hole, and didn’t see anybody coming. He was free to get a better look at the ground, and what he saw was unsettling. Wagon wheel tracks. Horseshoe markings. Kobold foot markings, and hundreds of cultist’s boots. He sniffed the air. There was dust in it. More than there had been days before. Another growl escaped him. 

Of course, they’d gotten away, and right under their noses. Stupid, weak, mortal bodies. If he’d been himself, he wouldn’t need rest. He could’ve handled that camp by himself in a matter of minutes. Another notch to add to his belt of failures. A growl rumbled deep in his throat this would simply not do. His aggressively borrowed cultist robes whirled around in a flurry of movement as he stormed into the camp in the growing darkness. He needed to see for himself exactly how little they’d left behind or if they could, in fact, mobilize en masse in such numbers on such short notice. They’d been dug in pretty deep when they’d last been here. He needed to know the true power and influence that this cult had. He needed to know everything. 


	8. Chapter 7

Xanth pushed aside his anger, remembering himself before rushing headlong into what could've easily become a trap. He allowed the rest of the group of individuals to catch up with him, and, together, they crept along in the shadows around to the mouth of the cave. They saw a couple of kobolds guarding the front, but decided that it would be simple enough to sneak around them. Except, when he peeked in he could see another grouping guarding just inside. “Anybody got ideas for a distraction?” He muttered.

Boar chuckled, took out a small metal looking ball, and pulled the pin out of it with his teeth, tossing it into the distance before covering his ears. “Oh, uh, fire.” He warned them quietly seconds before a booming noise shook the earth nearby.

Nebula rolled her eyes at Boar’s method, but, she had to admit, it was effective. She waited for the guards inside to run outside to check on the ruckus before being the first to walk in. Her eyes assessed the dimly lit cavern, walking straight in with single minded focus. There were a couple pillars of stone that helped support the ceiling, and she passed those without much thought, stopping only when she got to a ledge at the other end of the cavern. She leaned over the side to take a look at what was below, finding a room full of strange white stalked masses with caps atop them in a dark purple color. There was a strange lattice to the tops that looked like the tops could fit things through the mesh there. 

Having never seen it before, she wasn’t exactly sure what it meant. Regardless, she needed to get closer to inspect them. Her head turned, and she started to walk towards a set of stairs before logic took the reigns. If she were somebody trying to defend this cavern, those stairs would be trapped all to the Hells. Midstep, she turned to ask the group their opinion on what to do. When she turned, almost directly behind her stood the large figure that was Boar, reaching out for her as she started to fall. 

Her mind barely had a second to figure out what was happening, but, one thing, she knew. If this asshole was going to push her, she was taking him down with her. Her hands grabbed onto him, and she yanked him down with all of her body weight as gravity kicked in. 

Boar saw the blue skinned, white haired woman turn back around, and her foot leave the ledge. His instincts were highly honed, that much was true. He jumped in to save her, reaching out to catch her, but what he didn’t anticipate was Nebula not just falling, but trying to drag him down with her. He’d prepared to catch her partial weight, thinking that she would be trying to help him not hurt him, so he hadn’t properly shifted his weight to compensate. The next thing he knew, he was toppling down several feet, landing on top a soft, yet pointy object.

“Get off of me, you idiot!” Nebula barked as loudly as she dared, given where they were. She pushed him off of her, and started to scramble up to her feet, brushing off the dust from her clothes. She was so focused on herself, though, that she completely missed the signs of movement coming from the mushrooms nearby, and, seconds later, several pseudopods, wrapped around her as the fungus started trying to devour her whole. She let out a surprised scream, trying to hack and slash at it with a dagger.

Up above them, Xanth gave Kalinthe a deadpan stare, and moved a single fist in the direction of the fungus room, instantly summoning a ball of fire that burnt most of the mushrooms to a crisp, causing Nebula to fall to the ground looking worse for wear. 

Kalinthe rolled his eyes, and hopped down to the blackened ground below, grunting once when his ankle tweaked as he hit the dirt below oddly. He reached down, and touched Nebula’s shoulder, watching life breath back into her. He stepped forward, and his scythe appeared in his hand as he used it for its actual purposes with plants for once, reaping the room of the fungus in but three swings.

Elli shrugged, and pranced over to the stairs, tapping a toe on a step, and watching as it became a ramp. A smile came about her lips, and she slid down with surprising dexterity, landing at the bottom on her feet with not even a scratch to her person. She opened up her bag, and quickly patched both Nebula and Boar back up, smiling at them as she hummed a tune quietly to herself. 

Once Nebula was doing better, she turned to Boar, and glared at him with hatred in her eyes. She jabbed a finger into the man’s chest. “If you so much as think about touching me again, I will stop your fucking heart with my hand.” She threatened, punctuating the sentence by allowing lightning to arc into her fingers, and poking his arm this time. The yipping sound of surprise that he made giving her a feeling of victory, which made her smile.

“No- miss,” Boar replied with waning patience. He sneered the second word though he did look and sound like he was, at least, trying to be civil. “You don’t understand. I was trying to help you.”

“Your supposed help nearly got me killed.” She retorted without so much as a moment of consideration. “And, almost you as well. I’m the stronger one. Let me take the damn hits, and trust me to get up afterwards.” She told him with a flare to her nostrils. She twirled around, and stalked off, deeper into the cave. She growled. “I don’t have time for this.” She complained.

The next room was dark. So dark that Nebula could hardly see anything, but she was at the front; after everything that had just happened, she sure wasn’t going to give up her lead to somebody else. She reached out, and ran a hand along the roughly hewn and somewhat damp wall on her right. Her steps taken slightly slower than normal so that she knew that each one was in a safe place that wouldn’t cause a fall. 

Back behind her, Boar took the rear of the group, grumbling slurs under his breath that had Kalinthe grinning like mad just ahead of him. “Fucking genasi. Just djinns unfavorable farts.” 

Just ahead of Kalinthe, Elli overheard the insult, turning to tell him off for her friend. “Excuse me, you vanilla ice cream of a race-” she started only to be interrupted by a weight suddenly landing on her shoulder, and a shooting pain stabbing down into it almost simultaneously. She covered her lips to muffle a scream, throwing the thing off of her over her shoulder, and pulling her walking cane apart to reveal a shiny blade before stabbing it through the chest in one quick movement.

“Look alive.” Kalinthe commented as another of the same bat-like creatures came down at him. Suddenly, his body faded from existence, and all that remained behind was a floating skull surrounded by a purplish haze. The creature flew by where his shoulder had been seconds before, and, like with Elli, a single slash downwards dispatched it. He made a tutting noise. “What a hassle.” He complained, pushing Elli forward as he heard Boar’s sword slashing out behind him, which he was grateful for. At least, he had the sense not to shoot while they were trying to be stealthy.

Xanth summoned a maul to his hand, and bashed into two more of the creatures mid flight as they came down for a snack. They fell to the ground uselessly just in time for another to land on him, digging in with its claws, and starting to drink his blood. His eyes flashed with anger and, perhaps, a little pain. He growled, swinging his maul with the intent to hit the stirge on his person, but also injuring himself in the process. He growled, making the same fist as earlier, preparing himself to be surrounded by flame.

Instead of flame, a glaive swung beside Xanth, and another stirge fell. Then, a weapon zinged by, ringing with an unmistakable metallic sound. With a thunk, the throwing star sunk into a stirge that was feasting on Boar at the back of the group. Nebula looked down at Xanth. “Save it for something worthy.” She sneered, stalking over to Boar, and retrieving her weapon from the dead creature. All of them now had large stains of blood coming from the area around their neck, and she sighed, pointing with her glaive. “Go on ahead. I know you can see better than any of us.”

Xanth glared at Nebula with resentment. She was giving him orders again. Like a child. He was no child. He shook his head, grunting as he walked passed her, and into the room on the right only to see carcasses of animals hanging from the ceiling. The putrid smell that assailed his nostrils seconds later made him turn around instantly. He returned to the group a moment later. “There is nothing- useful, there.” His low voice informed them before he continued into the next cavern. 

**_Alright, I can already see your eyes glazing over. If you’re just going to tune this out so quickly, I don’t see the fucking point in going on with this story, so are you going to listen or not? Look, I get it. Nobody wants to hear about slaying troglodytes in a trash heap or sneaking past a bunch of kobolds and guard drakes only to find the adventurer dodging their way from spike traps, but it’s what happened. Got it? Good._ **

**_Now, where was I? Waukeen damn it. You made me lose my place! Okay, I think, maybe, I left off around the dragon hatchery? As I was saying, we destroyed all but one of the eggs, and took the last one with us. They were black, and large enough that we had to steal a cart to move it around easily. Now, no more interruptions. This is my story. Not yours. Who do you think you are? That useless idiot Volo?_ **

Boar could tell immediately from the feel and the large shape of the room that this was different from the other chambers thus far. The floors were smooth where they had been roughly hewn. Even the stalactites and stalagmites were polished to a gleaming shine. This room was warmer, too, and damp. Carvings of dragons adorned the flat walls; their tails coiling in ornate patterns and knots as the art continued across surface after surface. In one corner, a creature stood out above the rest. Instead of the normal dragons, this one had five heads, and was depicted erupting from a volcano. 

Now that he’d seen the individual drawings, he could view it as a whole, and he realized what he was seeing. The motifs were depicting the other dragons joining the side of the great beast at the center. And, finally, Boar’s eyes moved down to find a wooden chest with silver and other inlays that he would need to be closer to inspect. It was resting just below the illustration of the great dragon. 

Boar took a step closer, solely focused on the treasure before a voice rang out. “You survived! I don’t know whether to be disappointed or pleased. It’s a mix of both, I think.” Out of the corner of Boar’s eye the all too familiar and intimidating figure of the half dragon, Cyanwrath, stepped into view proper beside him, flanking on either side, were two humans with axes who looked prepared to fight.

A glaive lowered on one side of Boar, at the ready. A scythe repeated the motion on the other side. There was a tense silence until Xanth rolled his eyes from behind them, and growled. A fist extended, and the cultists were wreathed in fire. Seconds later, each one of them sprung into action. Well, except for Elli. 

Elli did a pirouette in place, and pranced over to the chest that Boar had seen, thinking that, since the cultists were outnumbered, they had things well in hand. 

Behind her, Nebula used her glaive’s reach to corner one of the humans quite literally, striking him decisively, but he was wiley and it was taking quite a bit of time to put him down. The effort drew her attentions almost completely away from the struggles of the other three. 

Xanth extended a finger, and muttered a word that sounded a bit like, “blast.” Seconds later, a bolt of force struck into the other human whom Kalinthe rushed up to, slashing and striking at with killing intent, which left only Boar and Cyanwrath.

Staring each other down.

Motionless.

Moments later, Boar drew his gun, and, in seconds, unloaded it. A smile came about his face as the smoke cleared only for it to be instantly wiped away when Cyanwrath still stood, stepping closer and closer. His movements casual, and a sneer fixed in place as he lanced through Boar’s gut with his mighty halberd. “Still not good enough.” He rumbled as the human fell to his knees, bleeding out.

A glow came from behind Cyanwrath, and a flash of metal and movement. A slick, wet sound could be heard before a thunk as a half dragon head hit stone. “No, you weren’t.” Kalinthe smirked, closing his fist as that same ethereal smoke flew into it.

The action settled down almost as quickly as it started, and Elli turned from her work picking the lock on the chest to find a dying Boar. She sighed in aggravation. These new people liked to get hurt far too much for her tastes. It made her- angry- to have to fix them all the time with such little thanks. “Do no harm.” She muttered quietly to herself. “Do not harm.” She said again under her breath. 

Elli kneeled at Boar’s side, and pulled the weapon out of his gut, suchering it closed, and wrapping him up. “You’re fine. Now, get up and stay back like you should.” She ordered in a clinical manner, looking around, and pointing out a door. “This way, I think.”

Nebula nodded, and took lead, tapping her polearm on the ground to test for any traps. They walked down a slightly darkened tunnel, finding candlelight at the other end. The light came from atop a desk. Beside it was a stool. A couple of other tables were scattered about as well as books and papers strewn atop each of those in some semblance of order only the owner could perceive. A standing mirror stood in one corner, and two lamps hung from corners to illuminate the room better. Thick rugs covered the hard, stone floor. 

Kalinthe stepped up to the table, and noticed that one of the papers opened up was actually a map of the Greenfields area that they were in. A couple of towns looked to be marked off, and an arrow was sketched from the Greenfields towards Beregost. Nearby, a separate sheet of paper that was covered in numbers contained a note.  _ Everything must be freighted north to Naerytar. Rezmir allowed us to keep some pearls, a ring, and a handful of small stones. _ He picked up another paper, and looked at it critically. 

“A dragon so gentle and kind, saw a unicorn badly entwined, his silvery mane, caught up in a chain, so she helped him out of his bind.” He read as a limerick, sneering slightly before reading another. “A dragon whose hoard was admired, thought a housekeeper required, while dusting the coin, a few she’d purloin, so the housekeeper had to be fired.” He paused now, and shook his head. “These are terrible.”

Behind them, a familiar figure stepped out of an attached chamber. “I think they’re actually quite good.”

“Because you wrote them.” Nebula retorted with a scowl. 

Xanth stepped past all of them, and stood just out of polearm range from Mondath. “Stop.” He ordered the room before regarding the taller woman with disdain. “You are a waste.” He stated simply. “All of this potential, and you waste it on what? Dragons? You could have greatness, and, instead, this.” He told her scornfully. “Now, you useless piece of filth. You are going to tell us absolutely everything you know, and, maybe, I’ll feel nice enough to let you leave with your miserable life.”


	9. Chapter 8

**_So, with Mondath literally stripped of her pride, a dragon egg in tow, and little bit of loot in our pockets, we started making our way North to Elturel. Now, I had a delivery that was supposed to go to the next town over in Scornubel, but I wouldn’t actually make it there. Gods, I would never make it there. In fact, if memory serves, in Elturel, I passed off that mission to an Order member that was suddenly much less busy than I was._ **

**_I remember seeing the brilliant beacon like light above the city for the first time. It was like a sigh of relief to see it after the struggles of the past few days. I did notice at the time that, when Kalinthe and Xanth laid eyes on it, it gave them some discomfort. An eye twitch here or a look of frustration there. Maybe, I should’ve recognized it then, but what was I supposed to think? I was working with them for the greater good of the realm. At the time, I thought they were in it with good intentions, too. Of course, I was in far too deep by the time I realized the truth._ **

**_By that time, I just wanted to get through the Hellscape that my life had become. Finish the job, take the money, and settle down. There were a lot of places that I could’ve done that. Elturel was one of them. Luskan, too. All I really needed was space for a shop, trade, and a place with good ale. Gods, so much ale._ **

**_We made it across the Chionthar river, seeing some mounted riders, galloping by with banners held high. Their armor gleamed like every paladin you imagine from the stories. Like none of the armor in this story shone. We wandered around for a bit, asking around for Leosin, since we knew he was heading up that way, and one was much faster than five. Of course, not a soul knew who we were asking about. So, we decided to do some shopping, hoping that someone we were supposed to meet found us._ **

The group split up. Elli went to go get herbs and alchemist's supplies for potions. Nebula made it no secret that she was handing the other woman a large chunk of change in order to fund the venture. After the exchange was made, Nebula decided to go to the river to pray. It had been some time since she’d paid respects to her God. 

Boar waved to the rest, and went to go find a tavern. He promised himself an ale, and he wasn’t going to wait another minute. 

Kalinthe and Xanth gave each other looks before shrugging, and walking down the street. They stopped a man, and asked where to find a weapons shop and bookstore. The man was a bit startled by the looks of the strangers, but quickly pointed them in the direction of a place called Shiarra’s Market. Supposedly, anything they needed could be found there. 

When they arrived at the marketplace, they separated, trying to find what they needed. Xanth was quickly lead to a place at the back of the market. There was an image of a feathered at with an arrow stuck through it as a sign, and, as he entered, a bell rang at the door. 

As the door shut behind him, he noticed a thick yellow line down the center of the room. On the left of the line, rows of weapons were stacked in orderly fashion with price tags marking them in truly organized fashion. On the right, a neat and tidy assembly of bookshelves were nestled side by side. Tome after tome were stacked next to each other with bindings out for easy perusal. At the back of the establishment, a human man with a somewhat slight figure and pale complexion stood behind a counter. On the right side of the table sat a large top hat, and on the left side of the table was a bowler cap. Even the table was separated by the yellow line directly down the center.

Xanth looked at the man, and noticed that his clothes were split in similar fashion. On one side, he had a pauldron and gauntlet. On the other, he was wearing fine silks. His eye twitched at the mere thought of dealing with this man, but he was already here. He stepped forward to the table, and the human picked up a pointer stick, gesturing between the two hats with a questioning look upon his face. 

Xanth sighed, voice grumbling slightly. “I am looking for books on dragons.” 

The human nodded, gingerly placing the top hat upon his head, and turning in such a way that the fine robes could only be seen as he stepped over to the book side of the line. He looked the stacks up and down, letting out quiet tutting noises before he used the long wooden pointer to make a circle motion around four books in particular on the shelf. 

Xanth looked at the names of the books, and squinted, sighing once again when he saw the names.  _ Lennithon _ ,  _ How to Tame Your Dragon (Pocket Edition) _ ,  _ Draconic for Dummies _ , and  _ 1001 Poems on Dragons _ . He pulled one off of the shelf, thumbing through it thoughtfully as he heard the shop door open up behind him with the tinkling sound of a bell.

“Why is it always you?” Kalinthe asked him from his place at the door, and walking over to the weapons. His eyes scanning what he was seeing. He turned to the shopkeep, and asked, “do you have something like this one, but smaller?” His voice almost booming in the otherwise silent shop.

The shopkeeper turned, giving Kalinthe a dirty look, and putting the pointer in front of his lips. “Shh.” He responded, giving that little tutting sound from earlier as Xanth closed the first book, and grabbed the other three. He walked over to the desk, and placed them on the center where the eccentric shop keep followed, stepping behind the desk, and meticulously moving each book back over to its proper side, and packaged them all up. As he packed them away, he checked the pricing on the covers, and did some quick math, showing Xanth the ledger as request for payment.

Xanth nodded, fished out the gold, and placed it on the desk, taking the package of books, and making his way out of the door. He thought he remembered which inn he saw Boar walk into earlier. “When you’re done, I’ll be reading.” He told Kalinthe on his way out. 

Kalinthe looked flabbergasted by the whole exchange, and watched as the shopkeep took off the top hat, dusted it off, and placed it on the desk before taking the bowler hat. He placed that on his head, and showed off his armored side as he walked over to the left side of the shop. He looked at the scythe that Kalinthe was pointing out, and gestured with his arms, making a wide gesture before making it smaller. His face looked questioning.

Kalinthe’s eye twitched, but he nodded. “Yes, smaller.”

At the bar, Boar was three sheets in. Several empty glasses graced his table, and he hiccuped as the door opened behind him. 

Xanth stepped inside, and saw a rack of antlers in a dark ebony color mounted on the wall above the bar. A small sign beneath it reading A Pair of Black Antlers. His head swivelled around, and he found Boar’s booth easily, sliding in across from him, and placing the stack of tomes down on the table. He picked up the first, and started reading with interest, waving off the bar maiden when she tried to take his order. 

Over the next hour, Elli, Nebula, and Kalinthe returned with their business completed. Each of them ordered their preferred drinks, and they chatted lightly as a boisterous man partied off in the corner. He was human with a bald head, and a scar just over his left eye. A reddish brown beard dominated his face, and he wore full plate armor with a blue gauntlet symbol emblazoned in the center of the chest. A similar gauntlet adorned his right hand. His looks screamed one thing to anybody whose eyes laid upon him. Paladin. 

The man pointed towards their group, and they soon found themselves engaged in drinking games and other competitions. Arm wrestling, and boastful conversations about their adventures. All the while, Xanth quietly reading at the booth as if nothing had changed in the least. 

Hours later, when the sun was gone from the sky and only the soft glow of the magical light above the city remained as illumination outside, one of the men, a constant companion of the paladin, walked over. Of all of the men in the tavern, he seemed to be the most sober, which wasn’t saying much, but he was clearly on a mission. “If you would please follow me.” He stated simply, walking with purpose into one of the back rooms.

In the room, the group found the unknown paladin, the monk, and many pitchers of dark, red wine. The paladin’s expression was serious and very much unlike anything they had seen on it thus far. His countenance entirely changed. He gestured to the seats about the table. “Since you already know of my companion. Please, let me introduce myself. I am Ontharr Frume of the Order of the Gauntlet. I have already spoken with Leosin at length over the details of what happened in Greenest and what you learned in the encampment. 

“My friends, we have important business to discuss. At this point, you know almost as much about it as we do, and, thanks to you, we know twice as much today as we did a tenday ago. Something rotten is afoot. We have no formal organization to oppose these rascals- not yet anyway.

“We’re working on that, and we need people like you who know how and when to fight as well as how and when to keep their heads down and observe. We can’t promise you anything except long days filled with danger and stress- but what could be better than that, eh?”

The group all stared at the man blankly, processing what in the world it was he was trying to say to them. After a moment, Xanth leaned forward at the table, propping his elbows up, and humming. “What’s in it for us if we help?”

Leosin sighed, interrupting what looked like something that was going to be a tirade on Ontharr’s part. “We can’t offer much by the way of money, but we can offer our faction’s mutual assistance. We can help you with disguises and any wares that you need, and assistance with passage to Balder’s. Once you’re there, it’s up to you how you get into the caravan that will be leaving next. You’re all smart enough. We’re confident in your abilities to blend in with the crowd. You seemed to be able to do it well enough before.”

Xanth nodded thoughtfully. He needed this cult, so staying near them and learning more could not hurt. He glanced at Kalinthe and the others out of the corner of his eye. He would normally turn this down on principle, but it suited his needs well enough to go through with this. “I’m in.”


	10. Chapter 9

Boar watched from his seat on the small vessel as Nebula navigated the waters of the river. It had taken them three days, but, finally, Baldur’s Gate was visible. None were more grateful than him that they would be able to stretch and take a small break in the city. After the past few days, he needed some distance from the others. Even a few hours would be appreciated.

Nebula directed them to the docks, and moored their vessel, getting out to inform the quartermaster whose ship they were returning. After a moment, she returned to the group, and pointed towards a ship with three masts. A nearby sign indicated that they were on Stormshore Street. “When you’re done in town, you’ll be able to find me at The Low Lantern.” She informed them before striding off into the city to take care of some business first.

Boar did a double take between the supposed bar, and the city. Finally, he shook his head, and stepped inside of the tavern only to find a table full of folks gambling. A pleasant looking and scantily dressed woman in one of their laps. Ale seemed to be at hand everywhere with the occasional stronger drink. The ship rocked gently from side to side, and he shrugged. Of course, this group would meet at a seedy bar. “Fuck it.” He muttered to himself as he ordered an ale, and joined the card game.

Kalinthe nodded to Xanth, and followed after Nebula who stopped by a shop to sell some of the items that they’d acquired recently. He watched from outside as the deal was made, and stepped beside her as she left the establishment. When she turned her head to look at him, he gave a simple nod, smiling when she nodded back. 

Nebula saw the sign on a building that indicated  _ Purple Wyrm Inn _ . That was all the sign she needed before ducking inside with Kalinthe in tow. She quickly purchased a room for the night even though it was still early in the day. The implication of what she was doing clear in her mind, but she didn’t care what anybody thought. She wasn’t actually doing anything. Just having a long overdue chat. After letting the stoic dark cloaked man inside the room, she closed and locked the door behind them before disarming. Her glaive resting on the bed beside her. 

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Kalinthe take a seat in one of the chairs in the room. He regarded her, and laced his fingers together, resting his chin on them. She glanced up, and looked at him for a moment before sighing. From her hip, she pulled a small hunting knife, and cut into her hand, letting blood pool in her cupped hand. From her bag, she pulled out a small tray made of tarnished metal. She let her blood drip onto the tray for a moment before wrapping it with a ripped piece of her cloak. Then, she took some firestarter, and lit the contents of the tray ablaze, saying a small prayer under her breath as her eyes remained transfixed on the oddly sparking flames. After several moments, the tiny fire went out now that it was bereft of fuel. She nodded once, and packed up the items she’d removed from her pack, leaving the weapons off for the time being. 

“Neat trick, that.” Kalinthe commented lightly with a small point of his still laced fingers. 

“Just praying.” She told him honestly, making a sweeping gesture with her hands. The injury she’d given herself on full display for a brief moment before she closed her hand, and sat comfortably. “My way of telling you that I will be as open and honest as you seem to be.” She told him with her head tilted to the side in curiosity.

“You will have my candor.” He replied, leaning forward. His amber eyes piercing her own as his fingers separated, and he lowered his hood, revealing a body that seemed to be made of gathered shadow. A pair of horns protruded from the top of his head, but it all seemed to fade away after a moment, sloughing off until nothing remained behind except for an erinyes skull with glowing amber eyes. “So long as you’ll answer some questions of my own.”

Nebula watched the change in mystified silence for a full minute. She simply couldn’t take her eyes away. After a moment, she swallowed, and took a calming breath. “That actually explains quite a lot.” She told him, crossing one leg over another, and pushing a stray lock of hair behind an ear. “And, of course, that’s only fair.”

The floating skull with small wisps of purple energy emanating from it seemed to nod at her before his body began to reform in a slow process that took as long as its inverse. “Why don’t you go first, then? Since this is the conversation that you wanted, as you said, it’s only fair.”

She was pretty sure that he was toying with her given his words, but nodded. She mentally crossed off of her list why he was so slight for his size. That little transformation explained plenty on its own. He wasn’t human or really anything that she’d seen before. That much was clear. She thought about all the odd occurrences and statements over the past tenday or so. Baalzebul. Lord. His odd form. She also thought she remembered a few others, though, those she had questions about. “So, Lord Seventh, why exactly are you here?”

A light she hadn’t seen before glowed in his eyes, and he started to laugh. A smile impossibly marked on his face. After a moment, a gauntleted had wiped a bit of that odd shadow from near his eye, and flicked it away. “Ah, you’re a fun one.” He commented before leaning back in his seat. He hummed, and reflected for a moment before responding. “How much do you know about Myrkul?” He countered.

“The Lord of Bones?” She responded, looking out the window for a moment. “Not much.” She finished.

“As I thought.” He nodded before adding. “I was sent back. Forcefully. I want my power back, and I’ve found that reaping souls seems to make me stronger.” 

“That explains the strangeness after somebody dies near you.” Nebula replied before waving a hand, and gesturing to him. “Where are my manners? I owe you answers as well.”

Kalinthe nodded. His demeanor just as stoic as always, but, perhaps, more calculating. “Why Talos?”

A small smile pulled at her lips. “I’m from the archipelago near Chult.” She responded with eyes that didn’t blink. Like she was seeing something that was far away from them. “A trapper by trade. I was on my boat- just a small thing I could handle on my own- on my way in to port to sell my wares and resupply. I could see the town. Maybe a mile or so out. I obviously didn’t see it happen, but I was told that somewhere on shore a Talossan completed a ritual. Calling Down the Thunder, they called it. The next thing I know, my boat was capsized, and I was fighting for my life in the middle of a hurricane. Everything was destroyed.” She shook her head, and blinked. “Everything except for me and a handful of his priests. I learned to respect Talos that day.” 

“Fear is quite the motivator.” He stated calmly.

“It’s not fear.” She responded. “At no point was I ever afraid. If he wanted me dead, I would be dead.” She sighed, and shook her head again, rolling her eyes at herself. “Regardless, you owe me a question now.” She stood up, and paced the small space she had in the room as she thought. “So, now, I understand why the beacon in Elturel seemed to make you uncomfortable, but what about Xanth? He looked to be squirming just as much as you were.”

Kalinthe leaned in, elbows resting on his knees. “You’re observant.”

“No, actually. Not so much observant as- the reason behind an action.” She explained.

“Regardless.” He stated, using her words again. “Xanth is in a situation similar to myself. With a different master.”

“So, that’s why the child is okay to go off in the wild all on his own?” She asked as a follow up without thinking.

Kalinthe made a tutting sound, and waggled a finger. “Oh, no. I won’t let you distract me that easily.”

Nebula gave him a look, pausing in her tracks, and groaning. “Ugh. Sorry. It’s just- intriguing.”

He waved. “As you were.” His eyes glanced down to the glaive on the bed. “Did the church teach you to fight, then?”

“They taught me some tricks.” She responded vaguely. “That magic forcefield around me. I think it’s like lightning.” She raised her fists, and got into a fighting stance, focusing, and taking a couple of jabs as her fists sparked with lightning. “They called it stormstriker.” She eventually added with a shrug.

Kalinthe watched her for a moment, satisfied with her explanation before answering her earlier question. “Xanth is much older and wiser than his physical years seem.” He responded. “What does that forcefield do? Other than damage.”

“Slows them down, mostly. Every once in a while, I can help reverse heal Elli.” She responded vaguely.

“Reverse heal?” His voice baffled.

Nebula chuckled. “Take the damage instead of her. I still get hurt, but it’s better than the healer getting hurt.”

“Ah.” He responded in understanding.

Nebula sat back down. “Why haven’t I seen Xanth eat?”

Kalinthe’s lips twitched upwards into a smirk. “I suspect that he eats overnight while the rest of us sleep. He’s very- particular about his diet.”

She nodded even though the way he said that left more questions in her mind. She guessed that he didn’t think she was ready to hear it. With how odd this was already, she probably wasn’t. “I believe it’s your ask.”

“What’s your goal with the Zhentarim?” He asked with as much interest as before.

She looked up at the ceiling, and rubbed her temples. “Not much, honestly. They’re just useful allies to have. Do you consume the souls you take?”

“Will my answer change anything?” He countered without missing a beat.

“No, not really. Just curious at this point.” She responded bluntly.

“I don’t know. I don’t really eat in the traditional sense, and they do make me stronger. Is that answer enough for you?” Kalinthe responded.

Nebula nodded. “That’s fine.” She leaned back on the bed, using her arms to support her. “You’re up.” She yawned, sounding almost bored.

Kalinthe’s voice lowered and darkened slightly. “If I told you that, one day, I may need a favor. One as simple as walking away. What would you ask in return?”

Nebula smirked, and stood up, reaching a hand out in offering for a simple handshake. “Oh, this will be a beautiful partnership.” She responded with a similar tone, and a menacing smirk equal to his own. “Hold that thought while I consider, will you?”

“Deal.” Kalinthe responded, taking her hand, and giving it a single shake. Their eyes and hands held tight and level for several moments before the broke apart.


	11. Chapter 10

After a day of shopping, relaxation, and conversation, it was high time to get back to work. Boar rubbed his temples as he walked down the street with companions in tow towards the Merchant Quarter of Baldur’s Gate. His head was pounding, and he took a sip from his waterskin. “Fucking hangover.” He grumbled to himself more than anything.

Nearby, Kalinthe rolled his eyes, and patted Boar’s shoulder. His hand gave off a purplish glow with flecks of bluish white at the edges about his hand as he did so. “Don’t say I never did anything for you.” He commented as the magic soothed Boar’s hangover.

“Thanks.” Boar sighed. His shoulders instantly relaxed as they walked. 

Elli walked the slowest among them, hanging towards the back. Her eyes assessed the different shops that they were walking by. At one, she saw a grouping of two carts. Several workers were loading up the carts with wares and provisions while the merchant in charge ticked items off of a list. 

He glanced up at the clearly staring woman. “May I help you?”

“Where is this shipment headed?” She asked intuitively.

“Waterdeep by way of the Trade Way.” He remarked simply, turning his attention back to the documents at hand, and away from the strange lady.

“Do you need protection?” Elli pressed, flipping her head a bit, and a loose lock of her spiked hair flipped back out of her face. 

The merchant turned to actually look at Elli now. He gave her a once over. “What could  _ you  _ do?” He scoffed.

Elli’s lips pursed. This man was starting to make her angry. It was too bad that they needed an excuse to follow along with the caravan. She took a breath, getting ready to give him a piece of her mind when she felt three larger figures move closely behind her, and another shorter one step beside her. One of the bodies behind her reached out, and she felt a hand grip her shoulder in a firm but calming gesture. Her head turned to the side as Xanth spoke in his grisled voice.

“She is a doctor. We’re the fighters.” He corrected the merchant as his eyes gave a dangerous, pulsing glow.

“Prove it.” The merchant spat, pointing with his pen. “Lift that.”

Kalinthe sighed, and stepped around the group, moving over to the box, and hoisting it up with little effort before loading it into one of the carts. He turned to look at the merchant. “Well?” His musical timbre rising up a pitch before lowering back down melodically. “Will you have us as bodyguards, or should we take our services elsewhere?”

The man hummed, and released a sigh. He looked between the two ladies, and the smaller Xanth. Then, he looked back to Kalinthe. Determined to deal with only one nuisance at the moment. “They will be able to handle it?” He asked pointedly. His demeanor was firm, and demanded no nonsense.

Kalinthe eyed the man back. He schooled his expression for a moment before cracking a smile. “If they couldn’t, we would be in a much different locale at the moment. I hear that the Styx is lovely this time of year.”

He nodded, and shook Kalinthe’s hand. “Very well. You’re hired. In two days’ time, meet me here at first light, and we’ll make way with the caravan.”

“Lovely.” Kalinthe responded plainly, shaking the man’s hand with his cold, gauntlet covered one. “Enjoy your next forty-eight hours.” His grin stretching wider at the somewhat panic stricken look on their new employer’s face. He turned with a billow of robes, and stalked off with the group in tow. 

* * *

Ellingsithurtal strode beside the wagon. Her eyes peeled for any sign of the cult of the dragon in their midst. Except, instead of watching anybody particularly suspicious among the group, her attention kept wandering to a halfling. He was skinnier than some of the other halfling’s she’d met, which is why he was so familiar. His name was an odd one, too. Losvius Longnose. She knew it without asking. She would recognize that snooping rat anywhere. Luckily, he hadn’t recognized her yet, but it was only a matter of time. Her satchel seemed to weigh heavier over her shoulder, and she pulled it in front of her, dipping her hand in so she could feel that it was still there. A sigh of relief escaped her mouth. 

At the sudden noise, Nebula turned her attention towards Elli. “Doing alright over there, doc?” 

Elli nodded. “Yes.” She lied smoothly. “Just thought I’d forgotten some supplies back in town. 

Nebula’s eyes squinted at the other woman before she rolled them, and nodded, looking ahead. “Alright, then. Just don’t forget to actually do what we’ve come here for.”

“I won’t.” Elli frowned, looking at the Nebula with a small bit of anger in her eyes. She shook her head, and fell back a bit. She didn’t want to be so closely under Nebula’s thumb for a minute. Her fingers gently caressed the surface of the item in her bag. She palmed it, and carefully pulled it out. Her bag was quickly slung back over her shoulder. She opened her hand, and looked down at a gold necklace with a red gem at the center of it. It’s craftsmanship was intricate, and she was certain that the ruby was real. Her eyes hung on it for another moment before she pulled the necklace around her neck. 

Night fell, and small groups gathered about different fires along the road. Their group being no exception. They were eating a bland meal of cooked rice and pickled vegetables. At least, it beat dried rations. Mostly. Elli took a bite, and looked up to find the figure of that halfling again. Damned that halfling. Always getting into everybody’s business. She watched stoically as he climbed into the back of their cart, and started to rifle through their belongings. She stood up, and calmly walked over to him. She leaned on the cart a little, and crossed her arms. “And, what do you think you’re doing exactly?” She demanded in a quiet, yet urgent, tone.

The halfling jumped and spun around. A hand rested on the center of his chest, and he panted as he tried to calm himself back down. “I’m sorry, lass. I didn’t mean nuffin’ of it. Just lookin’ for some interestin’ folks is all.” He responded defensively as he carefully started to climb out of the wagon. He looked up at her taller figure expectantly as if waiting for something.

“I don’t care about your pathetic excuses. Just go.” She waved a hand. “Get out of here.” She told him, reaching up to the pendant on her neck, and clutching it tightly in her hand so she knew that it was safe.

The man eyed what she was holding, but nodded, stalking off to another fire in the distance. Elli’s eyes followed Longnose as he walked away. She wanted to be sure that he couldn’t be around to notice. To remember her. The halfling walked by the next closest fire, and she saw their employer chatting animatedly with a group of adventurers. She watched for a moment, and shook her head. She had a bad feeling about that, but, as her eyes watched the halfling’s expression, as he turned back around to see her watching him, all other thoughts were forgotten. 


	12. Chapter 11

Xanth walked towards the front of the cart they were guarding. Behind him, he could sense rather than see Elli walking at a similar pace. He could hear the steady pace of steps and hoofs greeting pathway. It was rhythmic, and almost hypnotizing. In the far distance behind him, he could hear feet moving at a slightly faster beat than the rest. Not long passed before a male voice bubbled up behind him from next to where he guessed Elli was.

“Aha!” Losvius announced by way of greeting. “It bothered me all night, it did, but I done figured it out, I did. You’re that doctor lady from back home you is. I recognized you by that pretty necklace. Tha’ t’ain’t not bobble it i’n’t. Let me buy it off ye, will ye? I’ve got me eye on that reward.”

Xanth’s head tilted to the side in interest, and he subtly made a gesture to give him the opportunity to turn and look at the exchange. He didn’t recognize the halfling, but that was okay. He was more interested in the people they suspected to be dragon cult, but he was, now,  _ much _ more interested in Elli’s reaction to this man. He’d been told that she had some demons inside of her, but that had yet to be seen. A malicious smile curled upwards on his cowled face. He suddenly couldn’t wait to hear more.

Elli looked down at the halfling. “Take a hike. I have no idea what you’re talking about.” She scoffed, turning her face to look forward, ignoring him as best she could.

“Aw, waddaya say? Five hundred gold? That’s a small fortune. More than enough to get somebody on the run wherever they need ta go. T’won’t even tell ‘em where ye be or where ye goin’?” The halfling asked in that same upbeat tone despite her rebuffing.

Elli’s teeth were gritted together. Her jaw firmly locked. Her lips in a tight line. “Go. Away.” She growled. 

The halfling grabbed onto Elli’s wrist. He stopped, and looked up at her as the caravan started to pass. 

Xanth’s ears strained to continue to listen. 

“Well, if ye won’t give it, then, I suppose I can jus’ giv’em a tip.” He pulled himself up, and looked defiantly back into the woman’s eyes. “I’mma sure they’ll be more thanna little happy in order to find out that the lady who killed their Lord is withina stones throw, and relatively unguarded.” A cheshire grin pulling at his lips.

Elli’s foot pounded down into the dirt. A hand reeled forward, and, with a resounding smack, a red handprint sized welt began to rise up on Losvius’s face. She turned around, and started to march forward with a swagger about her. That felt  _ good _ . 

Up ahead, a body turned to look at the commotion. They stumbled slightly as they watched, and the horse they were leading took a step off of the path. Seconds later, the wheel of their carriage followed off of the path, and the vehicle toppled over with a tumultuous commotion as the clatter and clink of gold and jewels started to pour out of the now damaged doors. 

Xanth watched as several people from other carriages rushed forward to help right the cart that had been thrown. Some checked that the horse was okay, but many were hefting the wagon up, and more were shovelling the coin and such back inside while another cast mending on the broken bits. He did his best to walk by without looking too interested, but, boy, that was interesting. He wanted to know more, but, in the meantime, he memorized the faces of all he saw at the cart and assisting it. He was almost certain that they had just irrevocably found the cult of the dragon hiding among them. 

His eyes looked forward, and, beyond the action, a group of people carried a sedan chair decorated with fine silks. Some of them moved about, and sleek jet black scales and horns jutted out. Piercing yellow eyes gazed on, unnoticing of the vigilant eyes of the hunters upon her.

* * *

Elli awoke in the morning. She was nestled inside of the wagon beside Nebula. She hugged onto her rucksack, and almost unconsciously reached up to finger the necklace on her neck. Suddenly, her eyes opened widely, and she was completely alert. She was out of her place, and dashing out of the cart in an instant. Her feet were loud as she jogged on the loose dirt where they rested, but it was quiet enough just before dawn. Those that were near waking only just wiggled as she passed by. That is until she found Longnose. That traitorous halfling. How dare he take what was hers?! She glared down at his prone form inside of his tent. 

“Do no harm. Do no harm.” She muttered to herself several times over before she grabbed a wad of gauze, and shoved it unceremoniously deeply into his throat. His eyes coming fully open now. A muffled scream escaped him, and he started to kick and fight back only to be pinned by surprising strength. She pulled his pillow out from under him, and pressed it firmly down into his nose and mouth until all movement and fight left him. Longnose was dead. Her fingers searched, finding in his pocket her missing necklace. A scowl graced her features as she laid him back down, arranging him to look like he’d fallen into a peaceful final slumber.


	13. Chapter 12

**_Honestly, I couldn’t tell you when and what happened in what order. It’s been a long time, and this journey was some forty days long. I remember it raining for several long days and nights, and, when it finally ended, the next morning, we were greeted by mushrooms for miles upon miles as far as the eye could see. When they were disturbed, terrible things happened though. They sounded like the wails and screams of humans dying. I remember being nearly driven mad by that one simple morning. I covered up my ears as best as I could, and powered through with all of the others that could do the same to clear the way again._ **

**_Another day while we were amid walking, we found a bunch of hobgoblins blocking the road. There was an overturned cart, and a cultist, I think, buried deeply to his neck in the sand. The word ‘TRAITOR’ written in blood on his forehead. We met a fighter named Buster just before we engaged the clan of them. We discussed tactics for a moment before using him as the keystone to get close before using a pincer maneuver and flanking around their ranks. The battle was glorious, and probably the most tactical that group ever was._ **

**_As we were getting closer to Waterdeep, we were walking through a path through a forested area when people up front were starting to pull out bows and arrows. Quickly a fire fight was happening as lesser marksmen were starting to fire at the largest elk I had ever seen in my life, and this one had a golden cloak that gleamed in the light. Atop its head was a rack of antlers that seemed to be made of pure silver. We hunted it down in the woods into a ruin, and, in that ruin, we were able to greet it. It was odd. We thought it was a beast, but, instead, it gave us a longbow, telling us of a prophecy of some sort regarding our journey._ **

**_Like I said, we went through a lot. Regardless, after Elli killed that halfling, that’s when things started to get truly interesting. The cult was starting to recognize us._ **

At the end of the day, word of the death of Losvius Longnose had spread throughout the camp. Nobody seemed to know what had caused it, but the general consensus was that it wasn’t a natural death. Nebula looked to their group’s employer before quietly excusing herself from around the campfire. Her eyes searched the dark landscape before she found Elli working on some sort of remedy near their cart. She hovered over the other woman for a moment, waiting somewhat impatiently to be acknowledged. Her breathing hitched in anger before it flared with a small spark of lightning in her eyes as well. She shoved Elli up against the cart. “What did you do?”

“What I had to.” Elli responded with surprising calm. Her eyes meeting Nebula’s furious ones. 

Nebula’s arm pressed harder into Elli’s chest, pinning her in place while the other charged with lightning. “What have I told you time and again?” She shook Elli. “Tell me.” She growled.

Elli’s eyes didn’t look the least bit afraid. “Do no harm.” She responded calmly. 

“You took that Talos be damned vow, so keep it. What was the point otherwise?” She grumbled, moving her hand back down and away from Elli as the pressure from her other arm ceased. 

“I was protecting myself.” The woman responded. Her shoulders seeming to relax slightly with Nebula’s sudden calm.

“Then protect yourself, but  _ do. Not. Screw. This. Up. _ ” She enunciated each word in order to make her point. She finished by popping the ‘p’. She took a step away, and turned to go take a walk into the trees, shaking her head. She needed to calm the fuck down.

As she walked off into the night, Xanth, who was quietly observing in the darkness on a rock smirked to himself. Oh, yes, he was enjoying this a bit too much. This sort of dissent, he could use. 

By morning, their employer gathered the group around, and gave them their pay for the last several days of the journey before waving them off. The adventurers that had been schmoozing him a few nights ago were his new guards, leaving Kalinthe, Xanth, Nebula, Elli, and Boar staring as they walked off into the distance. What in the world were they supposed to do now? Obviously, they could follow, but would it look suspicious?

Kalinthe was the first to roll his eyes and continue their march northwards. They would have to figure it out as they went. By noon, however, disaster struck as their former employer’s cart was being attacked by a cordon of trolls, which nearly toppled and destroyed the cart. The man’s new employees looking on in panic. Obviously, they hadn’t been prepared for actual danger on the trail. Kalinthe walked up, and crossed his arms as he watched the destruction. 

The merchant turned, and looked at the group of five that he’d initially hired. “Help! Please! My whole livelihood depends on it. I’ll give you double what I promised. Just get rid of the nuisance!” He demanded in his fervor.

Xanth’s eyes alighted at the man’s misfortune. “No, I don’t think we will.” He grumbled in his grizzly timbre.

“Please,” he fell on his knees before the group, pleading, and very nearly crying. “I’ll do anything.”

Nebula elbowed her way between the two darker figures. “Triple.”

“Done!”

With that, the group sprung into action, dispatching the trolls with practiced ease. Especially given the trump card that was Xanth, and his propensity for fire. Once they were finished, Xanth turned to look at the man who was still knelt down on the ground. His eyes glowed lightly, and he feigned blowing some dirt out from under his nails. “This never would’ve been a problem had you stayed the course.” He very nearly threatened. With that, he looked behind the merchant to find the supposed adventurers that he’d hired in their stead. 

Xanth was easily a foot or two shorter than most of them, and, as soon as he got close, they were looking down at him. Now that he was up close and personal, it was easy to see. These men were hardly even that. Young. Inexperienced. Their armor was merely scrap metal formed and fashioned together to look impressive. It glinted with a shine that no true warrior would ever allow of their armor. It had never even been used as such. They were taking advantage of the mental weaknesses of the merchant, and his lack of knowledge or perception of the situation. He scoffed. They were useless to him. He rolled his eyes, and waved a hand, turning around. Only speaking to them once they were behind him as they ought to be. “If I ever see you useless walking corpses again, I will feast on your flesh while you’re still breathing.” He threatened, smiling and letting out a derisive laugh as they ran off. 


	14. Chapter 13

During the ruckus that the trolls were causing at the caravan that the adventurers were working at, each of the five were too busy with the situation at hand to notice the obvious stares of the travellers that they’d started to recognize as members of the cult of the dragon. A set of yellow eyes wreathed in black scales looked on, and the wheels started to turn. She couldn’t have such a meddlesome group following, and, worse, possibly interfering. Perhaps, it was time to take matters into her own claws. A sneer pulled up at her lips, revealing a maw of razor sharp teeth. Yes, the group would be handled very soon.

The group were gathered around in the back of their cart. They had been served the oh so delicious gruel that they’d grown accustomed to on the Trade Way. There were several sighs among the group as they began to reluctantly dig into the tasteless meal. 

However, food was quickly forgotten as the doors to the cart opened, and a small in stature woman with long brunette hair, large ears, and an equally large nose let herself into their cart. She wore brown boots and gloves with reddish pauldrons that might’ve been crafted from a different type of hide. An impressively stylized shortsword hung at her hip, and her hat drew their eyes to a small red gem that was embedded into it. She closed the doors of the cart back behind her, and her eyes assessed their group critically especially lingering on three of them- Xanth, Kalinthe, and Nebula. 

After a moment of silence, Boar went back to eating only to have his hand smacked down. His spoon fell from his hand, and clattered to the ground. A small stain of the gruel leaving a mess there. He groaned, and reached down to grab the dirtied utensil. “Who the hell are you, and what was that for?” He demanded with surprising calm.

“The name’s Jamna Gleamsilver.” She responded cooly, turning from the large man to the three that she was the most interested in. “And, you are the adventurers from Greenest.” She smirked at the shock on a few of their faces. 

“How did you-?” Elli started only to be interrupted by Jamna.

“I’ve been following the caravan ever since Baldur’s Gate, and you all are starting to draw the type of attention that you should try to avoid.” She grabbed a dagger off of her hip, and stuck it into Boar’s bowl of food, rooting around for a minute before revealing a small bead, which was smooth in texture and the same color as their food. She picked it up in a gloved hand, pinching it between her thumb and pointer finger in order to properly reveal it to the group. 

As she held it, her smirk grew ever wider, and the gem in her hat seemed to glow lightly as the mischief in her grew. “This is a piece of bone, crafted so that it goes down easily, but, once inside an unsuspecting host, it uncurls. It’s a very painful way to die.” She informed them matter of factly. With that, she popped the small ball back into Boar’s food, and looked at the group. “If I had to guess, these are in all of your breakfasts.”

Nebula looked down at her bowl, and started to spoon through it until she found a bead that looked similar to the one in Boar’s bowl. Beside her, Elli, and Kalinthe did the same. Each of them silently acknowledging the truth.

Satisfied with their new understanding, Jamna looked between their group, and took a step back. “If it were me, I would do everything in my power to cover up who I was, and what I was after.” She looked between them all, and nodded. “Now, if any of you are so inclined to help me, I would appreciate any information you learn about our mutual… friends.” She grinned, turning around, and excusing herself from the cart. “Enjoy.” She told them with a singsong to her voice as she strode off with purpose. 

Xanth stooped over, and closed the doors to the cart, sitting back down. “What in Cania was that?” He asked the group in a sort of pointed bafflement.

Kalinthe began gathering their bowls, and waving a hand over them to clean them out. He shook his head as each one revealed one of those barbed balls, letting out a tutting noise as he gathered them up, and pocketed them for possible use in the future. “That is a good question.” He responded lowly, his voice somewhat lilting from a slightly higher note to lower.

“I didn’t get any falsehood off of her.” Nebula responded. “She wasn’t telling us everything, but none of it was a lie.”

Elli pointed at Nebula somewhat animatedly. “Yes, precisely that.” She looked at the group, and revealed the small piece of bone she’d palmed earlier. “I didn’t see her plant these, either. I think they really were in there before she came.”

“Alright.” Boar responded gruffly, pulling some rations out of his pack. He hoped they got to Waterdeep quickly. He didn’t know if he had enough rations to last them. “So, let’s say I believe her. What do we do about the cult’s watchful eyes on us?”

They all looked at each other somewhat blankly for a moment before Xanth suggested. “Perhaps, a distraction?” His grisled voice raised in tune as he asked.

Nebula made a little face, and shrugged. “Not my forte. What would you all suggest?”

Xanth looked between Kalinthe and Boar. “You two are the most noticeable of our group. The rest of us mostly blend in.”

“Maybe, we can remove one of us from the equation? Make it seem like there’s less of a threat?” Kalinthe suggested.

“I don’t mind shooting you,” Boar raised his fingers to make air quotes, “dead.”

Kalinthe gave the man a withering look before sighing. “If we think it will work, I am willing to try it.”

Nebula gave a skeptical look, but decided not to raise any concerns on the matter. She closed her eyes, and gave a little prayer to center herself. Sometimes, it was best to allow people to do stupid things, and allow them to come to her when they were ready. She didn’t have any bright ideas other than laying low at the moment, but she would put some more thought into it while they enacted this attention grabbing plan in the name of removing the eyes of the cult.

Elli hummed in thought. “I have some herbs that could make it look like you were dead. It would bring your heart rate down to next to nothing.”

The man’s amber orbs regarded Elli. “Then, I will take some just before we begin. Then, it will look all the better.”

Boar looked at Elli. “Where can I shoot him that will do the least damage?”

Elli smiled. She was happy to be using her expertise on the matter. She pointed to a place on the left side of Kalinthe’s chest. “Right here would bleed like hell, and definitely look like a kill shot.”

Xanth looked to Kalinthe as the other two were discussing just how to shoot him in the best way, giving him a smirk. He was enjoying this a little bit too much, but kept quiet. He had nothing to add to this plan at the moment other than suggesting how Kalinthe could rejoin the party after this plan had been put into action. 

Soon, a banging came at the cart doors, and the group climbed out, beginning to walk towards their destination again. Some had a slight spring to their step while others, Nebula in particular, looked completely indifferent. Throughout the long, trudging morning Boar and Kalinthe kept nearby each other, and occasionally made verbal jabs at each other. Each of them continued to get louder and louder until they were pushing the other, and, finally, they squared off, stopping in their tracks entirely as a cart rode by. A gun was aimed precisely where Elli had pointed earlier in the morning while Kalinthe held his trusty great scythe. 

“You’re a meddlesome nuisance that ought to be reaped.” Kalinthe called loudly.

“And, you’re a brooding and scheming prick that needs to stop trying to manipulate those around him.” Boar responded with ardor.

They stared at each other for another moment before. Eyes glinting with equal parts mischief and passion before Kalinthe’s scythe glowed with dark, purplish light. He raised it up over his head, intending to slash it down deeply into Boar’s neck and chest before three deliberate gunshots rang out in quick succession. His eyes dark and loathsome as he stared down at the body now laying on the ground, bleeding out. “Good riddance.” He spat, stalking off with haste in order to catch up with their cart.

Elli ran up with her doctor’s bag, kneeling down to try to ‘heal’ their downed friend. She patched him up, and made a show of checking for his pulse. She sniffled dramatically, and hugged onto Kalinthe, shaking him a bit. “Why?!” She screamed. “Why did you die?!”

Nebula moved her hand to her mouth to cover it up as if in shock. Really, she was trying hard not to laugh. She cleared her throat, and her eyes were watering hard not from grief. It was physically painful not to laugh at that show that Elli had just put on. She took a deep breath, and walked over to Kalinthe’s body. She lifted his bloodied form up, and started walking with purpose to bring his body into their cart.


	15. Chapter 14

The group collectively released a sigh of relief when, after forty days on the Trade Way headed North, they could finally see the spires of Waterdeep in the distance. For some, or possibly most, of them, they had never been to the booming metropolis. However, none of them- not one of them, voiced it to their group. Instead, when their employer’s cart was being unloaded at their destination and they had received their pay, Boar, Elli, Xanth, Nebula, and Kalinthe looked from one to the other silently. Eyes met. Heads nodded. Finally, one turned and left, and, so, soon did all the others. No words were shared. No information exchanged. Each and every one of them needed a break, and break they did. 

Somehow, somewhere, they would find each other again. Even in this strange, enormous city. Alone.

Boar walked deeper into the heart of the city. He wanted a drink. Waukeen, he needed it now, and he needed it strong. The only thing keeping him from dipping into one of the many bars that he passed was tales he’d heard even from all the way down in Athkatla. He wanted to find the Yawning Portal. 

His eyes wandered about, following the thoroughfare through the South Ward, or, perhaps, the Dock Ward, he wasn’t sure. His eyes darted from building to building. He saw a sign, which was labelled, ‘The Old Xoblob Shop’, but scoffed at the baubles he saw hanging in the windows. He stumbled around, dipping out of the way of a horse drawn carriage, and found himself on a new street simply named Snail Street. He looked at a passerby who was carrying some boxes in hand. “You.” He pointed demandingly. “Do you know where The Yawning Portal is?”

The man startled a bit at the intimidating tone about Boar’s voice, but managed to only jump and not drop his wares. “Y- yes.” He responded, all but stopping in his tracks.

“Well?” Boar grumbled.

“Oh, ah!” The man nearly fumbled his items in distraction. He nodded his head, and made a vague pointing gesture with his lips that made him look like a gaping fish with a hook stuck in its mouth. “That-a-way.” He responded, turning around, and starting back towards his destination.

Boar rolled his eyes, and took a gold piece from his pocket, placing it carefully in the one of the man’s hands as he continued to balance the boxes. “Thank you kindly.” He responded as he strode off, quickly finding the sanctuary where he would while away the day before going to sleep it all off.

Elli looked around, and took a deep breath. There was nothing quite like a city that she could somewhat blend in at. In some of the smaller towns, she received stares. Nebula did as well. She flipped her hair out of her face, smiling to herself. What did she want to do? It was oh so easy to get up to mischief in places like this, and nobody would be the wiser. She was better than them. More clever. A better healer. She could steal, and nobody would notice. They would think they had lost it all on their own. She giggled. Time to go make some house calls, and nip a few family jewels right off of the family. She nearly skipped as she made her way towards the palace. There had to be some ill nobles in that direction.

Nebula made her way towards the docks. She wanted to see the sea. It had been long. The Great Harbor opened up before her. She saw ship after ship docked. Some loading. Others unloading. All busy. The hustle and bustle had a familiar call. She took a breath of the sea air, and watched the waves calmly for several minutes. Her head held high even as the Eleint High Sun beat down on her face and shoulders. 

Eventually, she took a breath, and looked down. Though, this was the calm she required, it wasn’t right. The harbor was much too- tame. It took several moments, but a scowl began to grow, pulling her lips down into a deep frown. She knew what she had to do.

Her stride was different from before now. Where before she was on a mission for herself, and she’d gained the calm collection the wind and waves always brought, she did not have what he desired of her. Her steps where bouncing, and her hips swayed. She knew exactly what she needed, and she’d seen it on the way here. 

There was a bar. Windows shattered. An anchor coming out of the roof. If ever there was a cesspool of darkness and ill intent, that was it. She looked inside to see men, drinking out of large tankards of ale. She put a smile on her face, and walked by, being sure to stop long enough to give one of them a wink and a wave. She counted her steps as she strolled past the building. “Three. Two. One.” She counted down to herself as she pointed at her chest to indicate behind her as she heard it.

“Hold on a moment, miss!” He called. She could hear his footsteps moving quickly towards her. The smirk on her lips grew, if that was possible, and she closed her eyes, silently praying. She turned around, and a small light of lightning flashed in her eyes. Time to please Talos.

Xanth had few mortal- needs. He didn’t require sustenance. Nor did he require sleep. He was bereft of the light of this world. Separate from it. He couldn’t partake in the pleasures of the flesh like he once could in his former mortal life. Instead, he partook of things that were not, and could not be considered pleasurable by any normal person. He was a failure. He was unnatural, and he did not deserve to dine on fine food or drink sweet wine. 

It was so easy. A flash of a symbol here. A tip of some coin there, and he was alone in the morgue. His eyes rested on a peaceful looking corpse. He didn’t know why they were here. Nor did he care. His hand reached out, and, with a reddish glow, a large maul appeared in his hand, blinking itself into existence. He raised it over his head with two hands, and smashed it down, taking their leg. He left a splatter of blood behind, and could feel the mess on his face, but didn’t bother to wipe it away. Nobody could see it, he assured himself. He carefully bent the leg into his sack, and allowed his weapon to blink from existence. He barked a small, quiet laugh to himself as he headed out to rent a room for the night in order to enjoy his meal. 

Kalinthe’s mission was eerily similar to Xanth’s. However, he preferred his meals a touch- fresher. Instead of visiting the morgue, he decided to visit a small hospital. Ever since he’d ‘died’, he’d been masquerading around as a priest. It was simple enough to gain access from there. He strolled the beds one by one. His body stopping, and nearly floating to the side of a poor soul that he’d felt close to the brink. He took their hand, and looked into their eyes. “Be calm, my child.” He murmured in his tone. “I will help guide you to the afterlife safely.”

His scythe appeared in his hand, and he stroked it once over the body. It took no effort at all. The soul being pulled into the weapon as the mortal’s form grew cold and still. The weapon glowed with the sinister holy light of the Lord of Bones. He bowed his head, assured for now that Myrkul was pleased.

**_I was three sheets into a tankard at the Yawning Portal when I heard it. Rumors. Or, one rumor, really. Some people had seen a half dragon in town. Recently. Within the last tenday. Just the word of that caught my attention, but, then, I heard more. It was a chromatic half dragon. The kind that some people called an omen of foreboding. We were getting close; now, all we had to do was continue to follow the trail of breadcrumbs, and cut off the head of the snake before it could bite._ **


	16. Chapter 15

**_It was simple enough between Kalinthe and Xanth’s mutual persuasiveness to get us a job on the next caravan North from Waterdeep with some company called the High Road Charter Company. We met a couple of new folks that don’t ultimately matter, and merely seeing our faces again was enough to make the ones we knew to be cultists roll their eyes. We were starting to be recognized as thorns in their side. At the time, I wasn’t sure if that was a good thing or a bad thing. Hells, I’m still not quite sure, and that shit is long since passed._ **

**_You know what sucks worse than a fifty day journey to Waterdeep from Baldur’s Gate? Walking another fifteen days after that. My feet hurt. My boots and socks needed replacing. It was miserable. Especially when we realized that we were heading North as winter was fast approaching. To say that it was chilly was an understatement to those of us who had never travelled very far North before. Though, some of the group, hit their discomfort well._ **

**_Luckily, the trip was uneventful besides that. I’m not sure what I would have done had we dealt with any more misadventures on our path. Boring was good in my book. Still is. I count my time working at the forge without interruption as Waukeen given. So, we walked for another tenday and a half. Life was dull._ **

**_Well, that is, until we got there._ **

**_Carnath Roadhouse. I want to take a drink just thinking about it. Maybe hit my head on the table for good measure. You seem like good, understanding folks. Can I just say that I’m not proud of what happened there, and leave it at that? Please? We can move on, and talk about what happened next in the Mere instead._ **

**_Of course not. Now, you’re interested in this terrible story that you weren’t sure that you wanted to hear, aren’t you? Ugh. Fine, but, once again, I am not proud of this. Things got- well, they got dark there for a moment._ **

Elli sighed with relief when they arrived at their destination for the night. A stop called Carnath Roadhouse. It looked like some repairs had recently begun on the building. Some disrepair obvious to those observant enough to notice. She was glad that it had been cleaned up. It was getting uncomfortable to be outside at the moment. She didn’t quite care for the chill. She turned to look at Nebula, but she was unbundling from their journey. So, instead, her eyes assessed the room they were in. The building had multiple stories in a loft style, and her mind started to sort and categorize everything that she could. Information that she could use for later.

Boar smiled, seeing that the roadhouse had ale. Gods, he needed ale. He nearly stormed up to the bar, taking the first stool he found, and sitting heavily upon it. He found a half-orc behind the counter, staring him down. It was almost intimidating, but Boar figured he was just another big dumb orcish type. Like most others of his kind. He gave the other man a pleasant smile. “Evening. Could I please get your biggest tankard of ale?”

The half-orc nodded, and made a show of pouring it for him, sliding it to Boar over the counter. He placed a finger on the wood demandingly with a small thud. “Give. Bog Luck. Silver. Five.” He stated simply.

Boar blinked at the other man’s tone, but did as requested, placing down a gold piece. “I’ll probably get another.” He shrugged in a nonchalant manner.

“Food in kitchen. Up those stairs.” The Bog Luck responded, walking around the bar to go help with the shipments that just arrived. 

Kalinthe came up behind Boar, and placed a hand on the other man’s shoulder. “Let’s not push our luck with that one.”

As Boar was eyeing Kalinthe, he watched Xanth walk into one of the rooms behind the other man conspicuously. He sighed, and glanced all about the busy common area. “Got it.” He grumbled, picking up his mug of ale. “I’m going to go get some grub. Why don’t you go find out why your cohort is hiding away during all of this?” He pointed at the door that Xanth had disappeared into. 

Kalinthe turned away from Boar to look where he was point. He glanced at the stairs that Boar gestured to moments before. “Just be careful. It’s far too easy for the cultists to separate us here.” He spoke coldly and quietly. His voice settling down in a low, dark timbre filled with warning.

Kalinthe walked across the room. He saw Nebula’s eyes settle on him as he disappeared away. She had posted herself up at a table in the relative center of the room. Her eyes scanning all of the movement within. She could see both the stairs to the kitchen where Boar had disappeared, and the door he was about to enter. He smirked to himself. It was good to have worthy partners on his side. He knocked twice on the door before letting himself into the unlocked room, shutting it behind him. 

Inside, he found Xanth sitting in a wooden chair while a familiar gnome from much earlier in their journey lounged on one of the bunks. He looked between the pair, and nodded once. “Didn’t know you were here, Jamna.” He commented, glaring at Xanth, now. “Real subtle, there.” He added.

Xanth shrugged. His teeth gritted together, and face screwed up into a facsimile of a smile. “What can I say? I’m not as subtle.” He gestured towards Jamna. “We were just catching up.”

Nebula watched the room carefully. She saw Elli warming her hands on the fire, and staring into the embers. She shook her head. She never did understand the fascination with fire. Fire was controllable. Fire could be stopped. Dampened. She stopped herself before she could go too far down that path. She already knew the truth. It was her job to show others the strength of the storm, and she would do that her own way. As the night passed, she watched the known cultists get their food and drinks, refusing any herself. She needed to stay on guard while the others were distracted. Comforts would take away her edge, and she needed that here. They were at a disadvantage, and she didn’t care for that fact. 

When the night grew quiet and much less rowdy, the voice of the cook upstairs could be heard, shooing people out of his domain. “Get out, get out! It’s bad enough that I don’t get no sleep aroun’ here from all of the critters in the floors banging and knocking and hissing and whisperin’ at all hours without you all keepin’ me from sleep.”

Boar stumbled down the steps. His hands empty of the mug he’d held earlier. He looked around, and saw Nebula, walking over to her before asking, “which one of these is ours?”

Nebula flipped some hair over her shoulder, and pointed towards the door Xanth and Kalinthe were behind. “That one. Get some rest while you can.” She instructed. Her eyes meeting up with Elli’s at the chair next to the dying fire. They both stood up simultaneously, and a smirk crossed both faces conspiratorially. They had some snooping to do now that the building had grown still and silent for the night. They’d both been busy watching tonight, and they’d seen what many didn’t. Valuables being moved into a hidden room. They both carefully scooted a crate to the side only to find that the door behind it was securely locked beyond what either of them could manage. They met gazes, and sighed. Some assistance was needed. 

Elli walked into their bunk first, finding Boar looking surprisingly sober, and tired but awake. Clearly, Kalinthe’s handiwork. Behind her, Nebula shut the door, and they began to explain, using objects in the rooms to give the group information on the locations of things in the building. The half-orc’s room was in the corner adjacent to the room they were trying to get into. They decided that this was a good thing, so he couldn’t hear them making any noise. However, they all agreed on one thing. The half-orc probably had the key they needed. 

Boar raised a hand, and looked around the room. “I think that I have something that will help.” He pulled a small, mechanical crab out of his pack, and showed it to the group. “I should be able to get this into the room to scope things out, and snatch the key, if I can find it.”

Xanth shrugged. The plan was simple enough, and suited him just fine. He didn’t care to use too many spells at the moment, if it could be avoided. “Let’s give it a try, then.” He responded, looking around the group before his eyes stopped on Jamna. “You should stay here.”

The gnome nodded. “I’ll keep an eye and ear out.”

Boar took point, and they all crept out of their room into the darkened common area. As they neared Bog Luck’s space, Nebula forked off, stopping at the door beside it. She placed a hand on the metal door handle, and it suddenly sparked with electricity. A smirk came about her features as she pointed at the door, and mouthed, “cultist’s rooms.”

Boar’s eyes rose at the startlingly brutal method of deterrent Nebula was employing, but couldn’t do much about that at the moment. He had work to do. He set the small crab on the ground, and started to direct it into the half-orc’s space. He could see that the room was surprisingly nice with more than a few books lined up in orderly fashion on the walls. A small hearth rested against one of the exterior doors, and next to it a sitting chair. His machine started to creep past the seat towards the bed only to be abruptly smashed moments later. 

Boar suddenly stood up, dropping the controls to the destroyed machine in the seconds following the banging sound coming from inside of the room. He reached into his magical arsenal, and pulled out one of his guns as he backed away from the door that was thrown open moments later. He pulled his trigger, and heard his gun click. Embarrassment, and disappointment flowed through him. “Oh, hell.” He grumbled, pulling the trigger again in a dangerous attempt to clear it, and hearing a banging noise along with the screech of tortured metal. 

Kalinthe rolled his eyes, and a hand extended as his scythe appeared in his hand. It glowed with that sickening purple energy before coming down, slashing into the arm of a roaringly angry Bog Luck. The half-orc had managed to dodge partially out of the way, so it hadn’t done as much damage as he’d hoped. Behind him, he heard the sound of their room door opening in the distance. Jamna was about to join the fray.

Nebula turned away from the battle currently at hand, looking at the door she’d trapped. The place where the battle would be coming from. He glaive was out, and at the ready. A moment later, she heard a yelp, and the sound of a body falling to the ground behind the door. The sound of footsteps stomping resounded, and the next door over opened. She grunted in frustration. Of course, the cultists chose a tactically advantageous room with two doors. At least, she’d managed to take out one in the process. One of her hands moved into a small pouch at her hip, flinging a shuriken out of it as it lit up with the same crackling of electricity as the door a moment before. The weapon struck into the first cultist, stopping him briefly in his tracks. However, the others were not abated. Soon, she was surrounded by three other fighters. Her glaive and the magical shimmer of her protective bulwark the only things keeping her safe from certain doom.

Xanth’s great maul raised up, and came down hard into the shoulder of Bog Luck. He pulled the weapon back up, and moved to smash it back down only to be suddenly stopped by the other man’s shield. His weapon ricocheted off of it. A look of surprise stretching across his face as a sword was slashed down and across the boy’s chest. One of his hands came down to put pressure on the wound. He raised it up momentarily to see the redness of his life’s blood there. A dark look crossed his features. He had been put here with purpose, and damned it all if he was going to go back unsuccessful to be tortured only to be sent back at some indeterminate interval. He would not lose today. 

Elli looked all about the battle. Already, there were so many in need of help. She wasn’t sure where to even begin. Behind her, Nebula was surrounded. She wasn’t exactly taking much damage yet, but it was only a matter of time before one of the three enemies surrounding her found an opening. However, Xanth was already fairly badly wounded and bleeding heavily. Great splotches of red were blossoming on the floor. She took several steps back, and tossed a potion over in his direction. The vial hit the ground, and the fumes moved up and into his body. She saw the enormous cut on his chest begin to close up a moment before she turned around to help out Nebula. She giggled, and tapped the cultist on the shoulder, making him turn around in surprise. “Oh, hi, there.” She waved, giving him a bright smile.

Nebula took advantage of the sudden opening, striking with her glaive down and across the back of the one that Elli was distracting. She laughed as he fell down face first to the ground. She could hear the sounds of small footsteps behind her, and the cold metallic sound of Jamna’s dagger leaving its scabbard. The sickening wet sound of said dagger stabbing itself into one of the bodies behind her struck her to her core as a longsword caught her off guard, and slashed into her leg after glancing off of a piece of her armor. 

Another wave of cultists burst out of their rooms, summoned by the sounds of the battle raging below. Two of them leaned over the railing from the upper levels. The first waved a hand, and breathed life back into the cultist directly in front of Elli.

Now that he was fighting fit, he grabbed onto the woman’s ankle, making her topple down to the floor in a heap. He straddled the woman’s waist, and started wailing into her with punishing punches that left her almost completely stunned.

The other came from above and started to shoot down at them with arrows. A shortbow in their hand wielded with precise skill. One arrow made its way into Nebula’s shoulder and the other struck Jamna in quick succession. 

Xanth growled at the sounds of the enemy casting behind them, and the twang of a bowstring. He spun around, and made a gesture with his fist up in the air, and, up in the rafters, a ball of searing fire appeared from nothing in an instant. The screams of the two weaklings like music to his ears. 

Kalinthe was solely focused on the quarry in front of him. The half-orc Bog Luck was a nuisance who was in the way of his goals, so he must be removed from his path. He would be Reaped, and the soul would be his. His scythe rang out with the roar of thunder as it glowed with the anger and spite he felt for the pesky troublemaker before him. His amber eyes glowed with sudden fury when the tool before him survived the blow. “This one is mine.” He claimed.

Jamna saw the cultist reel around on her with a fire in their eyes. She made a move to jab in, and got a cut in on their thigh just above the knee. She’d missed her mark slightly. With these larger folks, she always tried to ground them. A rapier moved forward, stabbing into her, and blood started pouring out of her chest as she fell. 

Xanth saw both of the ladies fall, seeing that Nebula was doing well enough for herself even if she was surrounded by action. He swung his maul in one sweeping motion, striking the man that was hovering over Elli. The force of the hit threw the now dead body clear across the room, bloodied as it thumped into the wall there. He grabbed Elli’s hand, and pulled her up, pointing. “Help Jamna.” He ordered. The gnome had helped them, and was useful. They needed her alive.

Nebula saw out of the corner of her eye Xanth brutally handle Elli’s problem, which allowed her to turn back around to distract the one that had gotten the gnome. There was still the other meddlesome one beside her who had gotten a couple of poor hits in, but they were more annoying than anything. Obviously, they were less of a useful fighter and more of a fanatic who just so happened to be here.

Boar was now as far from the action as possible at the moment. His first weapon was broken. Not just jammed, and his big gun had almost immediately done the same. All he had left now were two revolvers. He took aim at Bog Luck with the first, and fired. He nearly wept when he heard another click. “Ahh!” He screamed among the battle torn room. He took his second revolver, and put it into his mouth, pulling the trigger, and hearing another click. His eyes searched the room, finding that the small well took his attention. He stormed towards it, and jumped in. Not even bothering to take a breath beforehand.

Elli quickly ran over, and wrapped up Jamna’s wounds, using some smelling salts to bring her back to the land of the living. She looked worse for the wear, but she was alive. Things were taking a turn for the better already. “You got this.” She encouraged the other woman.

Xanth saw the cultist closest to Jamna gain the upperhand in their fight against Nebula long enough to turn, and take a wide slash at the two women behind them. He watched in nearly slow motion as Elli took the brunt, and Jamna was knocked down, bleeding, but alive. He growled, storming over. He handed Jamna a potion, and ordered, “drink this.” His maul at the ready to strike.

Several things all happened at one time. Kalinthe got the final blow in on Bog Luck. Jamna drank the potion, and her body was converted into a gaseous form, starting to slowly retreat back towards their rooms to hide. Nebula took a stunning blow from the annoying cultist that she’d thought nothing of that made her fall to a knee. Finally, the last cultist who had been targeting Jamna almost exclusively looked around, seeing the relatively small area they were all in, and how bad off most of them looked. They closed their eyes, and the room was engulfed in a sudden ball of fire.

Only two were left standing when the light cleared. Kalinthe and Xanth. Somehow, it was always those two. Kalinthe looked between Elli and Jamna. He only had enough healing in him for one. He closed his eyes, and nodded, choosing to bring back Elli. Hopefully, if he fixed the healer, she could fix the rest. 


	17. Chapter 16

“Get up.” Kalinthe demanded, picking up the still worse for the wear Elli, and pushing her in the general direction of the dead or dying Jamna. “You die when I say you die. Now, fix the gnome. I’ll deal with the others.” He finished, kneeling down, and laying a hand on Nebula’s shoulder. “Wake up.” He said just as firmly to the second woman before walking over to the well where Boar was just now surfacing. His full body shaking with the cold from the frozen waters. “Stop wallowing, and make yourself useful.”

Xanth checked over the bodies, removing some paltry coin from the pockets of the dispatched cultists. Though Jamna was a useful tool for them, the matters of the dead and dying were not worthy of his mental space and time. After a bit, he turned his head to look at their group, finding all of them battered, but standing. The noises coming from the hidden room were starting to wane. “Hurry the fuck up before the trail goes cold.”

Boar stumbled over, shivering with a worn key in his hand. “Hey, can you do that magicky drying thingy?”

Xanth took the key, and lazily waved a finger, seeing the magic do its work before unlocking the formerly hidden door. He stepped into the darkened room, though, he didn’t notice the darkness. Inside, there were several carts. Most of them still filled with whatever wares the cultists had been carting North. It was simple enough to guess exactly what was inside of them. They had been raiding Greenest for their riches. Any logical person could work out what was in the carts. To the side of the room, a door stood. It was large enough to fit the carts, though, it was a tight enough fit that it would be one at a time. On the floor, there were obvious footprints, but they weren’t human. They looked a little different, but he couldn’t quite put his finger on it. “Nebula, you’re good with the tracking sort of things.” He called out.

The woman ducked under the low door into the tight quarters, and dark room. She peered around, struggling to see. She sighed, and knelt down beside where Xanth was looking. Her eyes squinted. “Yeah, these footprints are going that way.” She pointed, not knowing that she was pointing towards the door in the dark. “They look somewhat- reptilian. I would guess kobold, but they’re bigger than that.”

Xanth nodded as his mind categorized the information for later use. “Good.” His dark tone somewhat sneered as he pointed to the wagons. “That should be the gold that they’ve been carting. You have the bag.” He stated matter of factly. It was below him to ask her to do anything. She would do it because it was what she should do in this situation.

Nebula met the child’s eyes, and sighed, going to handle the task. She wasn’t going to pass up coin at this juncture. So, far, all they’d really earned on this venture was some paltry coin from working with the caravan, and what amounted to a bribe from Leosin and Onthaar that had already been long since spent on inns, meals, and items to keep them alive. She growled under her breath to herself. If Elli wasn’t such a good healer, she wouldn’t be worth how much she cost in healing potions alone.

Kalinthe watched with a critical eye as Elli worked in an attempt to reanimate Jamna. He saw her open up either an herbalism or, perhaps, an alchemy kit, and administer a few remedies, patching up wounds. Unfortunately, after the better part of an hour, the gnome didn’t even stir. A scowl plastered itself upon his face. Was he not a harbinger of the Lord of Bones himself? He should control the crossing over of souls, but, in this instance, he was not strong enough to do so. He turned around in a swirl of black cloaks and fury. “Let’s get moving, then.” He said, knowing that it was probably still hours from first light. 

He stepped into the hidden room, standing at his full, intimidating height. His eyes met Xanth’s as Nebula literally shoveled coin armful by armful into their bag. He smirked briefly to himself. Thank goodness for extradimensional space. His mind was brought back into the moment, and he gave a miniscule shake of his head to Xanth in order to let him know that their ally had not made it. He had made the wrong choice.

Xanth nodded once in a gesture just as small as Kalinthe’s came before it. He gestured the reaper towards the door, running a hand over the seams of it. They were obviously there, but he couldn’t actually find a keyhole or way to unlock it. “Best I can figure, it is some sort of enchantment.”

The reaper stepped closer to the portal, and ran his scythe down one of the cracks. It glowed as he swiped it, making a stomach churning scraping sound that pained the ears, but it didn’t budge. A single gauntleted hand made a simple waving gesture. His fingers glowed, but, this time, instead of the dark purplish hue, this was a lighter blue. Magic passed over the door, and he gave a nod to reaffirm what Xanth had already discovered on his own. “It is locked by magic.”

“So, it needs a password?” Nebula asked, stepping closer to them now that the wagons had been emptied, and the bag filled. 

“Either that or it is keyed to a specific person is the best that I can tell.” He looked around at their group, which had finally gathered together in this room. 

“Open sesame.” Nebula started dumbly, giving a shrug when others looked at her like she was stupid. “What?” She asked. “I didn’t hear anybody else trying things.”

Boar groaned. “Can’t believe I agree with that.” He commented before adding. “Hocus Pocus.”

“These passwords are an insult to magic. You’re basically making it sound like a street magician who says Abra Kadabra, Alakazam would be able to open this door.” Kalinthe insulted.

Nebula gave him a level gaze, touching a clearly angry Xanth’s shoulder to calm him. “Then, make your guess. You haven’t said anything constructive, yet.”

Kalinthe gazed levelly at the woman. She was a challenging one, and it was reassuring to have an ally that would do so. It was also maddening. He looked at the door, and muttered. “Die.” He grumbled.

Boar growled, and threw his hands in the air. “Praise Tiamat!” He guessed. When the door didn’t open, he slid against a different space on the wall. This is ridiculous. We could’ve just left the building and found the other side of the exit in as much time. 

Xanth spoke up. “The passage could be underground and hidden for all we know. This is the best course of action.” He paused, looking calculatingly at the inanimate object. “I once heard of a door that opened when one said the word friend in a different language.” He offered, muttering the word in all of the languages he spoke. The others in the group all muttered the word in the languages they knew. When that didn’t work, they all looked at each other, completely at a loss at the moment.

Elli stepped forward, and shrugged. “Well, since it’s not working, would you like me to cast knock?”

Boar let out a screeching sound from in between gritted teeth that sounded something like a noise that someone might make when giving themselves a hernia. “Yes,  _ please _ !” He screamed as the door made a scraping noise, opening itself wide for the group to step through without further issue. “The FUCK!” He shouted. His face visibly red even in the unlit room. He grumbled, shook his head, and started to walk all while he muttered unintelligible expletives under his breath.

The group followed along in the hidden tunnel. This one was obviously well cared for with archways built and wood panellings added to keep wagons from ruining the integrity of walls or scraping the ceilings. It wasn’t the longest of tunnels, but it was long enough for them to come up on the other side of the High Road a ways away from the Roadhouse. Boar looked around, seeing cobwebs, leafless trees, moss, mold, and large pools of water all about. “Where are we?”

“The Mere of Dead Men.” Nebula answered, walking ahead of him in order to take point as her eyes assessed the ground for cart tracks and footprints, which were more than a little difficult to track in this terrain. “I’ve never been, but I’m familiar enough with the terrain. Follow me.” She offered, thankful to have the scant light of the moon aiding her on their endeavor. Thankfully, the faster they walked, the fresher the signs of passage became. Carts, especially ones that were weighted down, made for slow travel in places like this. They were gaining on their quarry.

As they walked, Xanth kept his eyes vigilant all around the terrain and above them. The skies were very open here. The barren trees a strategic advantage to their enemies in the cult while they were the ones in unknown terrain far from civilization. There were few places to hide here for one person let alone a group of five. A group of five that, unfortunately, required sleep on a regular basis. He saw the exhaustion beginning to set into their group, and reluctantly called out. “Perhaps, we should rest the rest of the night until dawn.” He suggested when they reached a somewhat dryer portion of the swamp.

Nebula turned from the area she was looking at for tracking, and gazed at the group. “This could be either easier or harder in the light. I won’t know until time has passed.” She offered.

“Look, if we’re going to be fighting, we need to be at full strength.” Boar shook his head, making a flippant gesture. He yawned. “And, I’m so fucking tired that my eyes are blurry.”

Kalinthe looked at Xanth, and nodded. “I used too much magic putting down the half-orc.”

The group looked at Elli who just shrugged. “I could sleep.”

“Then, let’s rest while it is safe to do so.” Xanth suggested.

Nebula unloaded her pack, and started setting up a tent. “Thanks.” She muttered, bedding down quickly, and using her pack as a makeshift pillow in her bedroll. 

Xanth watched as, one by one, their group started to get some much needed rest. He continued his wakeful watch, reading a book that he had purchased recently in Waterdeep. His eyes occasionally wandering back around the wetlands, and at the skies. He went back to looking at the pages, and, after some time, he saw a shadow pass over the campsite, briefly blocking out the light of the moon. He let out a low sound that was somewhere between a growl and a grumble, and closed his book with a quiet, but decisive, snap. He stood up, prepared to wake up the rest.

Two more passes of the darkness came. Sweeping ones. As the dragon circled them like a vulture to the carrion of its next meal. The boy didn’t care to be thought of as prey, and he stood more confidently. If anything, this dragon was the weak one in this situation because it couldn’t possibly know what they could do. If it did, then, the cult was much stronger and powerful than they had yet to experience. Massive, leathery wings beat down nearby, bringing with it waves of air that rushed passed, and blew Xanth’s hood back. The dragon’s body made the earth shake briefly with its weight before its low, rumbling voice jeered. “Wakey, wakey, Heroes.” He greeted, his neck turning to let him look directly at Xanth with his yellow eyes. 

Xanth’s eyes met the dragon with a level gaze for several long moments. His arm raised, and, as it did, his sleeve slipped down his arm to reveal his hand in a fist. “Fireball.” He stated simply as the entire encampment, himself, and the head of the dragon were suddenly engulfed in flame. With the surprised screams, grunts, and coughs of his party coming from behind him, Xanth’s eyes glowed with poorly hidden fury. “Do. Not. Call. Us. Heroes.” He stated in a tone that was simply so sinister that anybody with half of a sixth sense felt their hackles raise, and fear rush through them. 


End file.
